TrashFest 2020
July 25
A celebration of eco-art and community building
ABOUT THE FESTIVAL
For years, The Tank has hosted DarkFest - a week of shows that does not use conventional theatrical lighting in an effort to reexamine how we can make theater more sustainable. This year, we are challenging that idea even further with TrashFest. It is often difficult to wrestle with the environmental impact our daily lives and our work can have - especially in theater, where so many resources can be put into sets, props, and costumes that are only used for a short amount of time. That is why Trashfest will center work that not only produces no waste, but reuses materials discarded as garbage. The festival will take the form of live-streamed performances, art installations, and community events throughout NYC.
TRASHFEST ART COMING SOON!
ABOUT THE PIECES
Scared Image In Everything | Sequoah Glaster
Hanging art with plastic water bottles for indoor semi-hydroponic plants / mandala art pieces. The canvas will be made out of trader joe bags, cardboard and other flashy packaging.
Photos of the hanging art to be displayed on this webpage in the morning on July 25th.
Bag Lover | Shaley Howard
Reusable fruit bags made from recycled materials.
Photos of the bags to be displayed on this webpage in the morning on July 25th.
CAN I Be Art? | Gerardo Sustaeta
A textile fabric using only found aluminum cans that acts as a functional privacy screen.
An exploration of possible uses for discarded aluminum cans in public art and their potential value and current role as currency in our society through a collaborative crowd sourced community effort (coming soon!)
Learn more at www.canibeart.com or follow the project progress on Instagram @canibeart
This project is sponsored by www.idogaf.me
Gerardo Sustaeta was born in Mexico City and grew up in San Diego, California. For the past 10+ years he has lived in New York City and worked as freelance carpenter and architectural model maker. The impact of COVID-19 and subsequent lockdown restrictions has severely impacted his employment opportunities and he is now turning to “making art” in attempt to create new opportunities for not just himself, but hopefully for others who want to participate in this project as well.
Photos of the aluminum can art to be displayed on this webpage in the morning on July 25th.
Childhood Blankets, Adult Clothes | Melon Wong
A micro upcycled fashion collection using old blankets from my family home dated from the 80s to 90s. The collection will explore racial and national intersectionality (Asian American culture) and the culture of domestic repair skills.
Melon is an apparel designer and circus artist currently based in New York City. In her independent work, she tends to lean towards themes of social commentary and draws visual inspiration from Asian folk art, camp, vintage clothing and pop art.
Her current visual work creates dynamic relationships with kitsch aesthetics by commenting on the modern second generation immigrant identity. By weaving the lowbrow as a representation of the standard "home" with her personal understanding of motherland and identity, she is able to identify this culture in limbo as a third space. By focusing specifically on this generation, she hopes to amplify the feelings of cultural insecurity by defining a space that legitimizes and verbalizes the state of confusion.Through a series of visual responses, she continues to identify this third space as a constant negotiation rather than a physical and singular act of displacement.
Photos of the fashion collection to be displayed on this webpage in the morning on July 25th.
The Handmade Theater | Mariko Iwasa
A short story told using trash for costume, sets and puppetry.
Mariko is a NY-based clown and physical comedian. She has been awarded the Syracuse Area Live Theater award for her role as SNOOPY in the RedHouse Theater production of A Charlie Brown Christmas. Mariko spent about four years delighting crowds nationwide as a clown for the world- renowned Ringling Brothers Circus. She continues to perform in theater, orchestra or music live, children’s events etc... both New York and Tokyo, creating original featurettes melding classical tap, juggling and slapstick comedy. She hopes to spread the joy of circus art and vaudeville to contemporary audiences of all ages.
Mariko is currently making fun Physical comedy/ Clown based videos on her YouTube Channel called “The Handmade Theater” https://www.youtube.com/c/MarikoIwasaTheHandmadeTheater
Please visit and check other episodes! One or Two Videos update every week!!
Tune in at 12pm on July 25th for this piece.
Lanka in the Clouds | Kanishk Pandey
"Lanka in the Clouds" is a show that plays with puppetry and storytelling to parallel issues of environmentalism and immigration. The puppets will be made from trash, as to further emphasize the various parallels throughout the show.
kanishk pandey is a writer, born in Davis, CA. He graduated from NYU’s Department of Dramatic Writing with a focus in playwriting in 2019. At 19, He was a finalist for the O’Neill National Playwright’s Conference for his play COLONY. His play GLENN had a staged reading at the Broke People Play Festival of 2019. He is the founder of AdoptAPlay.com.
Mery Cheung (she/her) is a puppeteer, puppetsmith, and co-producer of Puppet Spread (The Tank) with The Ladies of Mischief. Most recently she performed the Jukebox in Funhouse Philosopher's Bloody Brains in a Jukebox: A Rock Opera (Coney Island USA) and has puppeteered for the screen in Nora from Queens (TV series), Ratso (webseries), and the 2020 L.A. Puppetry Guild's 48 Hour Puppet Film Festival with her duo The Flatulent Friends.
Tune in at 1pm on July 25th for this piece.
Abundance | Sarah Neides
Abundance is an installation piece composed of discarded fruits, vegetables, and floral waste in acceptable condition arranged to become an Eden of excess, beauty from waste. Related dance performance by Natalie Deryn will occur within the installation featuring costumes created from found compostable/recycled materials.
House of Trash | Sam Kaseta
A curated cabaret featuring drag and burlesque performers with acts made entirely out of trash.
Sam Bam Thankyoumaam (he/they) is a drag king, burlesque artist, and clown, dedicated to irreverence and the parodying of masculinity/machismo. Mr. Thankyoumaam's brand of performance focuses on blurring the lines between sexy and ridiculous. He has performed at House of Yes and The Tank, and you can follow him on Instagram @mrsambamthankyoumaam. Sam Bam Thankyoumaam is the alternate artistic persona of Sam Kaseta (they/them), who is a composer, musician, music director, and sound designer. Sam Kaseta recently received their M.M. in concert composition at NYU Steinhardt, where they studied with Joan La Barbara and Caroline Shaw. Hear their music at samkaseta.com.
Tune in at 8pm on July 25th for this piece.