A DANCE FOR THE SANITATION WORKERS OF ROTTERDAM
March 29 – April 2, 2017 at International Community Arts Festival in Rotterdam, the Netherlands
Forklift artists Krissie Marty and Allison Orr traveled to Rotterdam, the Netherlands, for the International Community Arts Festival. Together, Krissie and Allison worked with the local trash collectors on a short performance, screened Trash Dance, and led a workshop on “Community Dance US Style.”
During their week long residency, Orr and Marty met with artists of Rotterdam Neighbourhood Theater (RNT) to share work, discuss process, and engage in dialogue about participatory art-making processes, community partnerships and support, and funding models.
As a part of the ongoing dialogue with RNT and with support from its Artistic Director, Orr and Marty interviewed and shadowed city employees of the Rotterdam Sanitation Department. Orr and Marty also hosted a discussion and exchange between municipal employees Forklift has worked with in Austin and the employees in Rotterdam about work, community, and creative process. Orr and Marty then co-created a choreographic study with sanitation employees and their vehicles. Throughout the week, they held open rehearsals with sanitation employees and their vehicles for RNT artists and the community, culminating in the creation of a short workshop performance that was presented as part of the International Community Arts Festival.
