THE NEW YORK GOOFS: Ultimate Clown School 2008

WHAT: New York Goofs Ultimate Clown School 2008



WHERE: The Flea Theatre, 41 White Street, NY NY 10013



WHEN: July 28 – August 9



WHO: Students interested in studying the art of clowning and physical comedy.



HOW MUCH: Tuition is $750 for one week, or $1300 for both weeks. Classes are held Monday thru Saturday from 10am-6pm with a final performance at the end of session.



2008 marks the 10th Anniversary of America’s premiere Clown training program, The New York Goofs Ultimate Clown School. In 1997, the Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Clown College closed its doors leaving a void in America for training in the circus and clown arts. The last director of the Clown College, Dick Monday, saw the need for a credible environment for clown exploration and workshops and created the New York Goofs. Now, 10 years later, the Ultimate clown school has graduated over three hundred students.

Tiffany Riley, co-founder and director of the school, is also the clown partner of Dick Monday. Billed as Slappy and Monday, they travel the world performing in circuses, Theaters, and festivals while maintaining and producing shows at their family theater at the Galleria Dallas in Dallas, Texas.

The school is in session for two intense weeks each summer in New York City. The faculty assembles from around the globe, bringing many different disciplines and points of view from their world of clowning. Clowning, character, improvisation, movement, mask, material development, skills and circus history are the areas of focus each year with a core of teachers including Hovey Burgess (NYU), Larry Pisoni (Pickle Family Circus), Tiffany Riley, Barbara Karger (Mummenschanz), Jay Stewart (Ringling), Michael Preston (Flying Karamazov Bros.), Kim Winslow (Big Apple Clown Care) and Evelyn Tuths (NY Goofs) with special guest instructors from the world of physical comedy.

The Flea Theater, under Artistic Director Jim Simpson and Producing Director Carol Ostrow, is one of New York’s leading Off-Off-Broadway companies. Founded in 1996, The Flea’s mission is to raise the standards of Off-Off-Broadway for artists and audiences alike. From A.R. Gurney to Adam Rapp, from Mac Wellman to Will Eno, The Flea’s two intimate spaces are a home for established artists taking new risks, emerging artists developing their ideas, and mid-career artists building sustained identities. The Flea has been awarded a Drama Desk, an Otto, and numerous OBIEs for its commitment to adventurous theater, and its Dance Conversations and Music with a View series are must-see showcases for the early-stage work of choreographers and composers. The Flea has hosted important downtown music, dance and theater groups and this spring we are pleased to present: New York Art Ensemble, Nina Winthrop and Dancers, Electronic Music Foundation, Western Wind Vocal Ensemble, Concrete Temple, Fly-by-Night Dance Theater and the New York Goofs. To learn more about The Flea, visit www.theflea.org.



To reserve your spot, visit our website today at www.nygoofs.com or call 212.591.0028