TRASH

Yllana & Toompak - Sadler's Wells Peacock Theatre

Infectious beats, positive vibes and an authentic experience. The passion and dedication from the cast encourages the audience to get involved.

'One man's trash is another man's treasure' and TRASH proves this statement correct. This is an hour and a half of upbeat tunes, fun and the feeling of passion for music fills the theatre. TRASH was created back in 2021and the company Yllana have been creating comedy and physical theatre work, performing all over the world for the last 33 years!

This show is set in a recycling centre, the workers are sorting through the garbage and creating their own fun whilst they work. As the characters bounce off each other, creating comedy and chaos. They play with household rubbish; they play games with the items and find each item makes different sounds; they play familiar tunes with items, such as plastic bottles, metal cans and anything you would just throw away. It's an explorative piece that plays with sound, lighting and visuals in an authentic way. It's a beautiful concept; such a simple item could bring joy and fun if they are used for something else. It's unique!

The cast play clown-like characters and create comedy through their reactions, interactions with each other and breaking the fourth-wall to connect with the audience. It is mostly a non-verbal piece, the content comes from movements and the way the cast interact with each other; there is minimal spoken parts, there is a mix of languages in the show. The way the words are spoken, the tone, speed and expression are what tell the audience what is going on. There is even an audience participation section. The over exaggerated characters are fun for the children and the interactions with the audience keeps young ones engaged. The best element of the piece is the encouragement to react, get involved and move to the music. It gives the audience members an element of freedom and unity. The back and forth with the audience helps liven the piece and their reactions encourages the cast to tailor their piece to what the audience enjoys the most in some moments. There is a hierarchy between the characters, which creates the workplace atmosphere, one character plays the boss and the other cast members will stop messing around when he enters. There is the dim character also, who does not take cues and messes up when the boss enters the room. The relationships and reactions create the fun, playful nature of the show.

One of the most engaging and impressive aspects of the show is the timing of the cast, they do not miss or delay a beat! The sounds that come from each prop is interesting, they have clearly played around with each item to find ways to create different tones, notes and vibrations. The set creates a recycling centre with generator style blocks in the background, the worker's 'overalls' vibe of the costumes and hard hats. Each scene is set by the introduction of a new item to use as an instrument, the transitions are sleek, as the workers will enter and then pack up and move on to the next moment and sometimes the lighting will change to indicate a scene change. The finale of the piece is the company putting together items to create a sign that says 'TRASH', this is impressive, eye catching and opens the high energy, electric closing number and encourages the audience to get on their feet and dance!

TRASH has a number in the show that suits every member of the audience, you will recognise something, there are latin beats, a bit of queen and even a beautiful Beethoven number that includes the chosen audience members. A wide range of music from different genres and cultures. This is a show that celebrates a love of music, how it brings everyone together and how joy can come from the most trivial, everyday item. It is iconic, original and it is always refreshing to watch a show where the cast clearly enjoy what they're doing and fully immerse themselves in the show they are putting on. I highly recommend this piece, it is not what you will be expecting, whilst also being what is written on the tin. It's TRASH turned into a magical, electric piece of theatre, that will brighten your day. The items are trash, but the content of the work is far from trash! It's a divine experience to take all of your family to see; this unique piece of art at Sadler's Wells Peacock theatre!