Stretching Humanity: Contortion in a Cross-Cultural Context

Contortion is a powerful expressive form as its one instrument, the human body, is a tool all of humanity shares. I plan to examine the role that contortion plays in conversations of identity, community and the construction of what it means to be human as I explore local dynamics in traditional Mongolian contortion, ancient Chinese acrobatics, Indian yoga and the contemporary circus movement in Montreal. Through participation, observation and intercultural exploration, I will delve into the spiritual, artistic and humanistic potential of this expressive human form.