January 6 to 10, 2025
9:30 am to 12:30 pm (Mon-Fri)
Full week: $95 (taxes included)
Drop-in: N/A
Language of instruction: Frenglish (mix of English and French)
Questions can be asked in English and French.
CATEGORY
OBJECTIVE
Contortionism doesn’t signify “being flexible.” It is a physical technique that one learns and works with. There is no secret.
Contortion is a heightened awareness of the inner sensations of the body and an intimate dialogue with its limits – its allies. In a constant dialogue with one’s body, contortion seeks to open it rather than bend it. Without ever pushing its limits, we will learn to collaborate with them, all while maintaining total respect for the body. These classes will be based on specific exercises in active flexibility and elongation. We will listen to and serve the body to address posture, endurance, and explore the possibilities of its range.
Aimed at demystifying the movement and range of the spine, this workshop is intended for all body artists who:
– desire to improve their flexibility;
– want to discover a new body technique;
– seek new tools to integrate their flexibility into their practice;
– wish to develop confidence and knowledge to venture into specific and particular work with the spine;
– are embarking on a new journey into the inner sensations of their body and opening up to a new approach to it.
CONTENT
My approach does not focus on form at all. During this workshop, I offer a personal journey and a dive into the heart of one’s inner sensations. Personal limits become allies, guiding us in the process of opening the body. There is absolutely no goal to reach “tricks” such as: “We will touch our feet to our head”.
It is a space of sensitive dialogue between oneself and one’s body. The participants, guided by exercises, are free to follow their path with full respect for their physical and mental abilities. Participants will be asked to sit on the floor for extended periods of time, with some exercises also done standing. Visual demonstrations are offered, but explorations are mainly guided by verbal indications.
| Workshop Pace | Workshop Features |
| Variable | Exercises are adaptable Floor work Standing up for a long time |
BIOGRAPHY
Conceptual and performance artist Andréane Leclerc (she) is interested in human encounters that guide her towards interdisciplinary and inter-artistic processes. Trained as a contortionist, she draws inspiration from her 20 years of circus practice to contemplate contortion as a philosophical posture and to develop her stage language. Her approach, centered on listening, relational ecology, and perceptive attention, is part of new body practices stemming from the field of somatics and performance.
In 2013, she completed a master’s degree focusing on the dramaturgy of prowess in the theater department at UQAM. That same year, she founded the company Nadère arts vivants to continue her exploration of a body-material evolving in sensation rather than sensationalism. Her works have been presented in Tokyo, Florence, Cairo, Tenerife, Sao Paolo, Guadalajara, Chicago, Rouyn-Noranda, and Montreal, on contemporary stages, as well as in museums and galleries.
Alongside her artistic career, Andréane Leclerc has been a pedagogue, offering contortion classes to physical artists since 2015.
It has taught me to move in new ways and think about movement in a different way. Also helped me to experience new feelings in my body and explore movement as a beginner in a friendly welcoming and encouraging space.
— Rojelio