Check out our Trash Project Mechandise!
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The Trash Project rolled out with a bang August 27th & 28th with two final performances for sold-out audiences of 4,000 people. Even though it was the hottest weekend of the summer (topping 112 degrees!), thousands of enthusiastic Austinites (and even some fans from as far away as Washington, DC) turned out to see their Solid Waste employees perform.
Writes Austin American Statesman Columnist Michael Barnes about the crowd, "...few arts events in Austin have ever attracted such heterogeneity. Sure, funky, artsy Armadillo Austin showed up...Also present were copious friends and families of the city workers, dignified members of the political establishment and, in large numbers, kids. Scads of little kids, impressed by the size of the machines, but also ready to get up and dance every time the music moved them."
See Press from the 2011 Encore Performances:
Feature from Jim Swift on KXAN
Arts Eclectic and Storyboard piece on KUT Radio
Lead Arts Story in The Austin Chronicle
Review from The Austin American Statesman
Read Rave Reviews of the 2009 Premier of The Trash Project:
by local critics from The Austin American Statesman and The Austin Chronicle.
Named the #1 Arts Event of 2009 by The Austin American Statesman, the #1 Dance Event of 2009 by The Austin Chronicle, and winner of Most Outstanding Dance Concert by The Austin Critics Table, and performed to an audience of 4,000 for its 2011 final encore performances, The Trash Project is a magical, one-of-a-kind dance performance that celebrates Austin’s Solid Waste Services employees while drawing attention to the inherent artistry and skill in this work.
Playing to a sold-out audience of nearly 2000 people upon its September 2009 premier, The Trash Project will ride again for two final encore performances August 27th and 28th.
Directed by choreographer Allison Orr with an original score by Graham Reynolds, The Trash Project is a unique partnership between an Austin arts organization and a City of Austin department, featuring 24 employees and 16 large sanitation vehicles from Solid Waste Services. Explains SWS Director Bob Gedert about the 2009 premier, “The Trash Project showcased our employees in a way that had never been done before. “[It] helped boost employee pride and morale and garnered lots of positive media attention for the department.” Austin City Council Member Laura Morrison says, "The Trash Project is one of the most unique and inspirational productions I have seen. Allison Orr, with Forklift Danceworks, produced a creative ballet on a grand scale that introduced the audience to the real beauty in the work of our Solid Waste Services employees.”
Not only did The Trash Project receive extensive critical acclaim, it brought positive attention to a job that is often looked down upon. Explains SWS employee Jermain DeFreeze, “With a very talented group of producers, directors and performers Forklift Danceworks took the day-to-day work of an unappreciated and unrecognized city department and made it into an art form that won several awards. As the men and women in collections now pick up trash, recycling, brush and bulky items, and clean the streets we have a sense of pride. The public now comes up, saying they saw The Trash Project, and ask our employees for autographs! Sensational.”
Surveys conducted by Forklift after the event show a similar response. 100% of the performing employees surveyed reported that The Trash Project improved morale and pride in their job. As well, 94% reported that the performance improved the public’s understanding and awareness of what SWS does, and 97% agreed that it improved the image of SWS employees held by the general Austin public.
The Trash Project was created over a period of two years. In 2007, Forklift’s Artistic Director Allison Orr approached Solid Waste Services about the possibility of collaborating to make a dance based on the movement performed by trash collectors in their daily work. The intention was to create an opportunity for citizens to learn about a job that all of us depend upon but most of us know little about. Allison gained approval from the department, and Forklift Danceworks and SWS embarked upon a yearlong partnership in the fall of 2008. Solid Waste Services gave Forklift access to all aspects of the department, and Allison spent countless early mornings riding on route in trash trucks, interviewing employees, and acquiring a clear and deep understanding of the nature of this work. Key employees came forward with an interest in performing in the project, and rehearsals took place regularly for two months. The final 75-minute performance featured 18 sections which highlighted different aspects of the job—from a dance for three street sweepers to an automated truck quartet, a solo for a bucket truck operator and his truck to a grand finale for all 16 vehicles. Download a PDF of the program, including performers bios.
Austin filmmaker Andrew Garrison is making a documentary about The Trash Project entitled Trash Dance, currently planned to premier in Austin in the spring of 2012. See a trailer for Trash Dance, which includes footage of Allison working with the Solid Waste Services employees.
For the August 2011 performances, Forklift Danceworks plans to increase capacity to 2,000 seats per show (for a total of two shows). Seating capacity in 2009 was only 700, and hundreds of people were turned away at the gate for lack of capacity. This time, the company is significantly increasing the capacity and site infrastructure so more people can be safely accommodated.
A VERY BIG THANK YOU tou our generous sponsors for The Trash Project 2011!
