Forklift Danceworks

Our Botanical Bash is Almost Here! 🌸🌿⛲️🪩🕺 Forklift Danceworks' annual fundraiser The Botany of Desire is THIS Thursday night at Zilker Botanical Garden

The night begins with a VIP Reception at 6:30pm hosted by Matthew Gaston, Zilker Botanical Garden's Director of Education, featuring live music, specialty bites and top-shelf elixirs.

At 7pm, garden gates will open up to more delectable eats, botanical-inspired beverages, and a flowering photo booth by artist Sarah Bork.

The evening will also include a signature Forklift performance, Golden Ticket Raffle, a late-night dance party with beats by DJ Mahealani overlooking the city skyline, and more!

Make sure your get your tickets here! https://hellofund.io/tickets/forklift/tickets

Thank you so much to our amazing Bedrock Sponsors! 🌸🌿⛲️🪩🕺

We couldn't throw a bash like the Botany of Desire without y'all!

Take a picture, it’ll last longer 📸 Claim your spot in the limelight with Sara Bork's iconic photo booth.

Make sure to grab a ticket to the Botany of Desire next Thursday night here: https://hellofund.io/tickets/forklift/tickets

Want to join us for our favorite party of the year for free? 🌸🌿⛲️🖤 🪩✨ Help out arranging flowers, driving a golf cart, picking up pizza, or other tasks, and you can!

Sign up for a shift here: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0C44A9AE2BA7FFC43-45438427-botany #/

Thank you! 💟

Hello from Vanderbilt University in Nashville! 👋🏻 This week Allison Orr is a resident at the The Curb Center at Vanderbilt working with the next generation of community-based performance practitioners (and checking out the campus trees). 🌳

She'll be speaking to several classes and leading a community dance workshop, and will give a public talk on her book, “DanceWorks: Stories of Creative Collaboration.”

See y'all at Texas Book Festival, one of our favorite cultural happenings in the Lone Star State! 🤠 Allison Orr and Forklift friends and collaborators will be talking about her book and our work together. Stay tuned for the full schedule so you can join us for this free talk!

We had a blast dropping in at the ICMA - International City/County Management Association's annual conference as artists to share how the arts can advance civic processes.

Our very own Allison Orr was joined by Travis County Commissioner Brigid Shea, Valerie LaCour Francois from the City of Round Rock, and Jorge Morales from the City of Austin.

They discussed how artists in collaboration with local government, artists can facilitate processes that amplify the voices of residents, activate neighborhood assets, and foster a stronger social fabric--building bridges between city staff and communities.

Tickets are finally here! 🌸🌿⛲️🖤 🪩✨ Grab a ticket now to spend an evening with Forklift for our annual fundraiser at on November 2nd.

Get your tickets here: https://hellofund.io/tickets/forklift/tickets

Guests will enjoy a wholly sensory experience, evoking the brilliance of botanicals and featuring local bites, beverages, a short performance, and in true Forklift fashion, a dance party under the stars!

Two chances next week to hear our very own Allison Orr talk about our work with water and city government!

👷 If you're attending the ICMA - International City/County Management Association annual conference in Austin, join her talk on October 3 about our collaborations with city departments around civic issues.

🌊 And on October 4 at noon, she'll be speaking about water as muse and collaborator in community-based art practice at a Planet Texas 2050 Roundtable. Register to attend here: https://waterasmuseroundtable.splashthat.com/

We are sorry to share that this weekend’s performance of The Way of Water: Onion Creek is canceled.

We have had positive COVID tests in our cast, so we have decided to cancel our outdoor event in order to keep our community safe.

We are working towards a larger performance at Onion Creek in April 2024, so stay tuned for updates about chances to see this performance. Take care!

The Way of Water: Onion Creek is this Saturday and we're feeling so thankful for our sponsors who make our work possible! H-E-B Cofer & Connelly IBC Bank Austin Parks Foundation CapMetro The Watershed Association

We have a few tickets left for The Way of Water: Onion Creek this Saturday, September 23 at 6:45pm at Onion Creek Park 💜🌾🧅

Grab a free ticket here: https://hellofund.io/tickets/purchase_tickets.php?slug=wow&form_name=ga%C2%A0

💧Continuing our exploration of water in Austin's unique watersheds, collaborating musician Vanessa Burden shares more about her new composition for this performance:

"I am excited to share, "Semillas : En Tres Movimientos" Saturday, which was created for healing and growth. It is experiential in nature, so the audience is encouraged to join our Onion Creek Community Choir in song if they are called to.

This is the first time I have ever conducted my own composition with our Community Choir, made up of Dove Springs neighbors, youth and Austin Watershed Protection workers.

I'm very grateful for the opportunity to hold space for those that may need healing as singing is one of the fastest ways to transmute energy. This whole experience has challenged me and changed me in the best way possible. We hope you can join us for what will be our debut performance!" 🌱

It takes a village to put on a Forklift show!

Help us make The Way of Water: Onion Creek, coming up this Saturday, happen by volunteering.

Volunteers will support the Forklift's small but mighty team with set up, parking, distributing surveys, ushering, and more!

Sign up to get to see the show, get a guest ticket, and contribute to this special performance exploring water in the Onion Creek watershed.

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0C44A9AE2BA7FFC43-theway2 #/

Revel in one of Austin's best views as a Forklift VIP 🏙️ Buy a sponsorship for "The Botany of Desire," Forklift's annual fundraiser on November 2nd, to join us for our VIP Reception from 6:30-8pm:

🌸 At Botany of Desire guests will enjoy a wholly sensory experience, evoking the brilliance of botanicals
👨‍🌾 Hosted by Instagram sensation and Zilker Botanical Garden Education Director, Matthew Gaston
🏙️ The VIP bash will overlook the Austin skyline, with one of the city's best views of downtown
🥂The pre-party will feature top-shelf elixirs and specialty bites from some of Austin’s finest eateries
🪩 At 8pm the garden gates will open for dancing and more celebration
Become a Botany of Desire Sponsor

⏰ The clock is ticking down until The Botany of Desire! Sponsorships over $2,500 purchased by the end of the day today will be included on our print invitations mailed out to thousands of Forklift fans! 📬

Grab one here: https://hellofund.io/tickets/forklift/tickets

"I have a deeper appreciation for the Vegetation Management team. They create safer spaces, help prevent flooding and plant seeds for more plants to grow," said an audience member after seeing "The Way of Water: Onion Creek."

🌎 Through our performances and events, you get to see what’s being done to care for the environment and turn the tide on the effects of climate change in our backyard.

💡Help us put climate solutions in the spotlight through community-based, captivating performances!

Chip in to help us continue this vital work: https://hellofund.io/d/donate.php?slug=wow23

📳 Ring. Ring. Mother earth is on the line! Answer the call to support earth-saving creativity 🌎

🙋 Support Forklift newest collaboration: The Way of Water: Onion Creek, a project exploring our earth's most precious resource: water, in Austin, Texas.

💭 We need your support for earth-saving creativity that encourages the dialogue necessary to find solutions. Your funds will be used to pay our collaborating community members who participate in Forklift events that explore water in Austin.

Help us get to $20,000 by September 30th by donating here! https://hellofund.io/d/donate.php?slug=wow23

Forklift was awarded a certificate of appreciation by the Travis County Summer Youth Employment Program’s administrative team, as a host of summer interns that worked on "The Way of Water: Onion Creek!"

The award letter said “By hosting our participants, you’ve not only offered them a job but also provided mentorship, instilled values, and illuminated potential career paths. The positive ripple effect of your contribution is boundless and long-lasting, creating waves that will continue to benefit our community for years to come.”

Thanks for partnering with us Travis County, Texas - Government ❤️

Making a little magic with wildflower seeds ✨ Save the date for our next event at the creek on September 22nd and 23rd as the Way of Water: Onion Creek continues. Free tickets will be available soon, so stay tuned to reserve yours.

Thanks for supporting Forklift Texans for the Arts!

We are stoked to highlight members Fork Lift Dance Works on this Member Muse Monday! Forklift Danceworks activates communities through a collaborative creative process. Forklift Danceworks values equity, collaboration, artistic excellence and connection. The work produced by the company demonstrates its core belief that all people are inherently creative. Forklift Danceworks envisions a world where art, movement and creativity are at the core of everyone’s daily life.

Forklift Danceworks was recently featured in Texas Monthly

"Turning day jobs into dance was the brainchild of Allison Orr. The choreography she creates as artistic director of the Austin-based Forklift Danceworks involves fifteen-ton trash trucks turning in unison or food-service employees pushing stainless steel carts to the beat of an original score. In her latest work, The Way of Water: Onion Creek, Orr and her team have performers wielding chain saws, pushing lawn mowers, and tossing out fistfuls of wildflower seeds."

Congrats to our friends and members on this fantastic article and even more incredible work they do.

We're feeling thankful for our amazing community sponsors Cofer & Connelly! We couldn't do our paw-formances without you. Thank you! 🐾🧡

"Where flowers bloom so does hope." 🌸 🖤✨ --Lady Bird Johnson

Make sure to mark your calendars to join us for botanical brilliance at our annual fundraiser The Botany of Desire on November 2. With Zilker Botanical Garden as our backdrop, guests will enjoy botanical-inspired beverages, a flowering photo booth, interactive performance, and dance party overlooking the city skyline.

A Sanitation Worker, a Climate Scientist, and a Modern Dancer Walk Onto a Stage ... what do y'all think next?

Read more about Forklift and what we're up to in Texas Monthly!

A Sanitation Worker, a Climate Scientist, and a Modern Dancer Walk Onto a Stage . . . . . . and Allison Orr, the founder of Forklift Danceworks, helps them turn their everyday movements into choreography with a mission.

Thanks to everyone who joined us in the Dog Days of Summer this weekend for Dances for Dogs! ❤️ 🐕🐾 We're filled with gratitude for everyone who was part of this special performance.

Thank you to Austin Animal Center for taking care of Austin's animals and collaborating with us. And thanks to our amazing hosts Waterloo Greenway for letting us grace the Moody Amphitheater stage with our crew of pups and the folks that care for them!

And a huge shout out to our generous sponsors Cofer & Connelly, IBC Bank, Austin Subaru and Austin 311.

"Understanding our inherent connections to one another will make us readier to care for each other and the world we share."

Read more from our very own Allison Orr in Next City, urbanist news, in an excerpt from her book "Dance Works."

What I Learned Making Dances With Firefighters And Sanitation Workers A choreographer works with city employees to create unlikely performances that share the movement and stories of their work and lives.

Dances for Dogs is BACK! 🐶🐾❤️

Join us and Austin Animal Center at Waterloo Greenway at 6pm this Friday, July 14 for a pawty & performance in the park!

🍦 The party includes an ice cream and pup cup vendor, a photo booth, local pet vendors, and a special performance of "Dances for Dogs and People Who Walk Them!"

💃 Bring your well-trained pup to participate in Forklift-fan favorite the "Insta-Dog Dance."

🌇 And enjoy a free outdoor screening of the movie "Best in Show," beginning at sunset.

Join us at Waterloo Greenway with Austin Watershed this Sunday for a Creekside Conversation about protecting and restoring Austin’s waterways. 🌿🌊💙

Special thanks to the Lowell H. Lebermann, Jr. Foundation for making this event possible!

Learn more here: https://waterloogreenway.org/events/tales-on-the-trail-july-9/

"I was amazed by how dance could connect with activism, politics, and social issues," she recalled. "Dance became a way to bridge gaps and celebrate the diverse communities we live in."

Read more about Allison Orr's book "Dance Works" in the Austin Chronicle's books edition. 📚

https://www.austinchronicle.com/arts/2023-06-30/choreographer-alison-orrs-new-book-dances-across-the-page/

We're still glowing from The Way of Water: Onion Creek, where more than 300 people attended our performance sharing the stories and scenery of the creek. 🧅💜🌾

If you missed it, scroll through these fabulous photos and mark your calendars for September 22 and 23 when we'll be back in the park for another small-scale, experimental performance.

Thank you so much to our partners at Austin Watershed, our guest choreographer José Ome Mazatl, musicians Vanessa Burden, DJGL, and Orión García.

And thank you to our sponsors Austin Parks Foundation, CapMetro, Wimberley Valley Watershed Association, IBC Bank, and Cofer & Connelly--we couldn't have done it without you!

📷 Jonica Moore and Corey Haynes

We are thrilled to announce that Bloomberg Philanthropies has selected "The Way of Water" as one of 17 finalists in the running to receive up to $1 million as part of its Public Art Challenge.

This unique grant program supports public art projects that address important local civic issues in cities across the country. Our partnership with the City of Austin's Watershed Protection Department was selected as a finalist from more than 150 project proposals received from cities in 40 U.S. states.

This fall, Bloomberg Philanthropies will select up to 10 winning cities to execute their projects over the next two years.

The premiere performance of "The Way of Water: Onion Creek" is tonight! 🌾🧅💜

We're so excited for you to experience stories and scenery of Onion Creek, as shared by Austin Watershed Protection and neighborhood youth.

We have a few free tickets left here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/the-way-of-water-onion-creek-tickets-627454652757

And we're looking for volunteers, especially for Saturday night, here: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0c44a9ae2ba7ffc43-theway1/114086209 #/

📷 Corey Haynes

The Way of Water: Onion Creek dream team! 🧅🌾💜

Help us bring this performance to life by volunteering this Friday and Saturday nights to make it happen!

Sign up here: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0c44a9ae2ba7ffc43-theway1/114086209 #/

The Way of Water: Onion Creek is coming up next Friday and Saturday, June 23 and 24! 🧅💜🌾🪩

We need your help to pull it off. 🤝

Sign up here for a volunteer slot: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0c44a9ae2ba7ffc43-theway1/114086209 #/