Testimonials

TrashTheatreProductions@gmail.com    519-532-3818

11yr old boy who bought 3 terrariums, not for gifts but for himself.......

"Hi my name is Ted from the craft sale and I just want to say that I just enjoy gardening a lot and I just love

the little terarriums and I just wish I've bought more from you guys and thanks for rapping my stuff I really thank you for that and I'm taking care of my mini turarrium and its doing great I especially like the liver wort plant it's so cool and I just love the terrariums you guys make THANK YOU !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Gail Kavelman, Program Services Coordinator -Ingersoll Public Library

“Over the past two years the Ingersoll Public Library has had the amazing pleasure of witnessing first hand the extraordinary talents of “Trash Theatre”. Crystal Bradford and Liam Kijewski’s energy and enthusiasm for all things “eco-friendly” has lit the faces of many of the children who have attended these programs.

From mask making to silk screening t-shirts, these performers have had a real impact on the thinking and the imaginations of the children.

As a Program Services Coordinator it is a real pleasure to watch the programs unfold in front of our eyes and see the wonderful link between literacy and love for the environment.

Crystal and Liam are a great team and share their love of nature so creatively. I would recommend them for all ages!”

Cristina McLaren, Branch Services Librarian- Oxford County Library

“The feedback I’ve received from branch staff about your programs has been very positive. Children (and adults) really enjoy the hands-on experience in making terrariums and masks with you. They also enjoyed the interesting facts you shared about the different species of plants you used and how wildlife is affected by some of these species of flora. Based on this feedback, I think your programs are high quality and we would like to see you back again next year.

Mask Making - “This was a fabulous activity – the kids had a great time creating (as did some of the parents who were assisting them).”

Taya Kozak-Goebel, Chair- Fern Arts Collective, Fern Avenue Public School -Toronto,Ontario

To Whom It May Concern,

My name is Taya Kozak-Goebel and I chair the Fern Avenue P.S Art Collective. I am writing this letter on behalf of the Trash Theatre company we booked this year through the Ontario Arts Councils, Artist in Education program. The Fern Arts Collective has booked many artist to work in our classrooms but of all the artists we have worked with Trash Theatre really stands above the rest. They brought a organized program based on recycled materials and than gave the kids creative freedom, then taught them about the animals that share this planet with us and showed them how to put it all together in a show to share there knowledge with others. They did not only meet our expectations but they really went above and beyond what we expected.

Through detailed correspondence, Crystal from Trash Theatre requested our 2 grade 6/7 and 7/8 teachers collect recycled boxes for masks. Of course the day before the workshop we realized one teacher had forgotten to collect boxes. Lucky for us, Trash Theatre came with an ample supply saving us from an embarrassing scramble to find 38 cereal boxes. This could have turned out to be a terrible way to start a workshop but instead it put a positive spin on the situation and gave us faith in the organization of the artist.

The project description we got declared our students would produce masks and costumes around an animal and nature theme with a performance using their artwork at the end. With this in mind we split our classes into a morning group and an afternoon group. In the first 3 days the groups worked on making their masks . This we expected but what we didn’t expect is the students would make 3-D full size costumes. They made a white tiger, a giraffe, a hippo, 3 polar bears, frogs and turtles to name just a few. These were costumes that took 2-3 students to work and were life size!

Another surprise in this already fantastic workshop was that the students learned all about where these animals live, how they survive and what is happening to their environments. They broke into groups and wrote presentations to go along with their costumes on global warming, the rainforest and polluting the oceans. These kids didn’t just make masks, they learned the effects humans have on these animals, their homes and most important what we can do to stop this from happening. For me the most impressive part was Liam and Crystal really brought the lesson full circle to what kids can do at home to stop the damage that’s happening to the earth. They gave really easy idea’s to kids, like recycling and turning off their lights. They spelled out the connection between a plastic bag here and a sea turtle out there. They empowered our students and showed them each one of us can make a difference. This was art and education really working at it’s best.

Day four was also a fantastic experience. Trash Theatre invited four grade 1 classes to come and make masks with the workshop seniors. Each senior got to mentor a grade one. Together they made a mask that the grade one student could wear and participate in the show with. Our teachers were so pleased to be given an opportunity to have the grades work together. Opportunity for this kind of collaboration does not happen often and the benefits are great. Not to mention how thrilled the kids were to have their own masks for the show !

I also want to mention that from an artistic point of view the masks these kids created were not made from your typical template. They were not shown examples of what they should look like, nor were they given restrictions on what there subject should be. This was a REAL art experience - cardboard, scissors, glue, paint, a big pile of fabric and their imagination. The only needed suggestion was eyeholes. I can’t stress enough my pleasure in seeing kids create with imagination and freedom and to think outside the box. Outside of prefabbed crafts and Martha Stuart type designs for children. Trash Theatre really embodies the idea that art can be made from anything. That you can take those things around you and make a song, yes, Liam did a fabulous rap about the environment and got the kids to join in! That you can take fabric and cardboard and turn that into a fun and beautiful performance about something as important as the environment. School is full of restrictions and rules and that continues out in the world as well. Children should be allowed to be free in their creativity and they need to experience art in a tangible way. Trash Theatre really gave that to our kids.

Our last day we had a fantastic show. The seniors costumes were amazing, you could hear the “OOOhs” and “Ahhhs” from the audience as they came out. While the kids were parading and acting out their animal scenes another student from the group was giving their speech about what they had all learned. Liam hosted and all the kids in the audience got to participate. The whole show was laughter and smiles, educational and inspirational.

Trash Theatre was organized, punctual, enthusiastic and encouraging but it was all these extras they brought with them that makes me write today. Their combination of free thinking creativity and high quality education sets them apart. I hope they can bring this fantastic workshop to other schools.

Best regards,

Taya Kozak-Goebel