JUNK creates provocative and physically daring productions at the intersection of dance and theater.

 
 

Photo by Steve Belkowitz.

 

BRIAN SANDERS’ JUNK

 
Dancer performing in Urban Scuba.

Since 1992, JUNK’S founder, choreographer, and dancer Brian Sanders has presented work in alternative formats that challenged traditional concepts of how “concert dance” should be presented and experienced.

Photo by Steve Belkowitz.

 

Unpredictable and uncommon in their movement, ideas, and storytelling, the company first connected with young urban audiences by performing in nightclubs and other alternative venues.

Photo by Ted Lieverman.

JUNK uses dance to turn what was thought of as worn out and unwanted into something vital and new. Finding a new way to look at junk—materials, ideas, places—enables people to see creative possibilities in everyday life. So too can dance grow out of almost anything.

Photo by Ted Lieverman.

 

Photo by Ted Lieverman.

JUNK is a nationally recognized dance troupe performing domestically and internationally as well as in Philadelphia and surrounding areas. Sanders continues to create evening-length works and produce a variety of repertoire on JUNK dancers. In 2022, JUNK is premiering Luster for the FringeArts and a collaboration set to Carmen with the Philadelphia Orchestra.

 

Brian Sanders sat down with Charles Tyson Jr. to talk all things JUNK. Check out the interview on Philadelphia Dance Talk Radio, brought to you by PhiladelphiaDance.com.

 

NEXT UP

After experiencing a JUNK show, you will see the world with fresh eyes and have a zest for the creative possibilities of what you may have previously overlooked.

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Ronda Goldfein, Esq
Board Chair

Joyce Beerbower
Secretary

Tracy Segal

Daniel O’neil

STAFF

Brian Sanders
Artistic Director
brian@briansandersjunk.com

 

BRIAN SANDERS

Inspired by the inventiveness of shows like Bob Fosse’s Dancin’ and Pilobolus on Broadway in the 1970s, Brian Sanders resolved to become a choreographer in his own right.

Brian Sanders

Photo by Jessica Griffin.

After an extensive career at MOMIX, Sanders founded his own company, Archetype Dance Company, in 1992. His artistic goal was to make modern dance more accessible to a younger urban audience. Sanders changed the Company's name in 1998 to JUNK, to reflect a growing interest in using found objects as props, enabling people to see creative possibilities in everyday life and showing that dance— along with exploration, invention, and inspiration—can grow out of almost anything.

In the 1990s Sanders broke boundaries with an out and proud nude cover photo on the Philadelphia City Paper showing a bold tattoo on his arm declaring him HIV+. Since his first creative endeavors, Sanders has celebrated his life as an openly gay artist and a long-term survivor of HIV. In 2010 The Philadelphia Inquirer wrote, “In the last two decades, Sanders, 44, has become one of Philadelphia's most enduring and beloved dance-makers. His prolific, daring, and mischievously fun-loving work has endeared him to audiences far and wide, and to the local dance community.” Sanders has also been honored by Equality Forum with a tribute concert for his career as part of the LGBTQ+ community.

The same year, Sanders was honored by Equality Forum with a tribute concert for his career as part of the LGBTQ+ community. His work with JUNK offers a platform for younger artists to foster their creativity and voice within the community.

Now entering its 30th anniversary season, Sanders is nationally recognized and celebrated as a prolific artist—creating accessible, and awe-inducing performances, while continuing to push the boundaries of modern dance.

Many of Sanders’ shows are developed for and premiere at the annual Philadelphia Fringe Festival, Philadelphia’s premiere performing arts festival, known for new, cutting-edge work. Sanders, JUNK, and their following have grown side-by-side with the Fringe Festival. Since 1999, when Sanders launched his first Philadelphia Fringe Festival production, Patio Plastico, Sanders has become recognized as a choreographic iconoclast who offers alternative perspectives to dance—now sought after by more traditional dance and arts organizations looking to present bold work.

Photo by JJ Tiziou.

Background photo by Steve Belkowitz.

MORE ABOUT BRIAN …

Articulate: A Moving Iconoclast
Clip: Season 7, Episode 13 | 13m 58s