Trash Dance

Garbage collection literally becomes art in Andrew Garrison's Trash Dance, which documents the creation of a performance piece built around sanitation workers. Garrison follows Austin choreographer Allison Orr for a year as she brings the project to life by embedding herself with the city's Solid Waste Services Department in order to get a feel for their work and to recruit participants. As in her previous productions, Orr aims to make invisible people visible. Although their jobs are undeniably necessary, citizens still tend to take these workers for granted—if they notice them at all. Orr, who is white, ends up with 24 performers, mostly black, who work in recycling, litter abatement, street cleaning, and dead animal collection. Spending time with her troupe, she finds that some are single parents, while a few have second jobs to make ends meet. She also discovers a world of talent that becomes integrated into the finished piece: Ivory Jackson Jr., for instance, contributes a rap, while Orange Jefferson plays harmonica on composer Graham Reynolds' stirring score. At the end of the film, Garrison presents a deftly edited overview of the performance which played out on an abandoned airport runway and attracted more audience members than the stands could hold. By shining a light on these unrecognized citizens, Garrison and Orr don't just put names and faces to these blue-collar positions, but also reveal the grace and artistry inherent in their everyday movements. Highly recommended. Aud: C, P. (K. Fennessy)