Streb - by Elizabeth Streb (Paperback)

About the Book

The Evel Knievel of dance creates a new way of seeing the body in action.

Book Synopsis

An inspiring memoir and self-help guide to greatness by the dancer Mikhail Baryshnikov calls "fearlessness and intelligence combined . . . potent and beautiful."

Called "the Evel Knievel of Dance," Elizabeth Streb has been pushing boundaries and testing the potential of the human body since childhood. Can she fly? Can she run up walls? Can she break through glass? How fast can she go?

With clarity and humor--and with her internationally-renowned dance troupe STREB--she continues to investigate what movement truly is and has come to these conclusions: It's off the ground! It creates impact! And it hurts trying to stop!

Here, Streb combines memoir and analysis to convey how she became an extreme action dancer and choreographer, developing a form of movement that's more NASCAR than modern dance, more boxing than ballet, and more than most people can handle "in this dizzying, inspirational self-help" books (Publishers Weekly, starred review).

Review Quotes

"[A] dizzying, inspirational self-help memoir... Streb's riveting prose should provoke and inspire philosophy students, dancers, and athletes of all kinds." --Publishers Weekly

"Fearlessness and intelligence combined--that is what makes Elizabeth Streb's work so potent and beautiful." --Mikhail Baryshnikov, former artistic director of the American Ballet Theatre

"...it's incredibly well written, blazingly articulate, brimming with ideas regarding space, time, movement--as if Martha Graham and Albert Einstein had a love child and named her Streb; like Batman and Robin gave her the secret code to how to explain all that happens behind KAPOW, SPLAT, and ZOWIE." --A. M. Homes, author of The End of Alice

"Elizabeth courts danger, tricks the eye, and thrills the spirit. She is a dynamic force. She's superhuman. She's Superwoman." --Trisha Brown, choreographer and visual artist

"in this inspiring and passionate book, ultra-tenacious Elizabeth shares with the reader some of her surrealist goals: leaving a room through the walls; never landing after jumping; and moving so fast that you stand still. Wow!" --Philippe Petit, high wire artist

"[Streb]...has long been a pioneer in blending gymnastics, dance, acrobatics and sheer daredevil insanity, and many have seen her work as an exhibition of pure dance energy."--New York Times

"Streb is a glorious acrobatic adventure."--The Guardian

"Streb cooks up a vibrant stew that's part circus, part sporting event, part theater, part student recital, and part scrupulous time-motion-energy investigation. The neighborhood sniffs the aroma and crowds in the door."--Village Voice

About the Author

Called the Evel Knievel of dance, Elizabeth Streb intertwines the disciplines of dance, athletics, rodeo, the circus, and Hollywood stunt-work. She founded STREB in 1985, which performs internationally in theaters, museums, and town squares. She established S.L.A.M. (STREB Lab for Action Mechanics) in 2003, a factory space in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, which produces a cottage industry of extreme action performances and invites everyday people to wonder about movement, gravity, and flight.