Choreographer Elizabeth Streb brings “extreme action heroes” to Ferst Center

The 65-year-old’s work tells the story of the physical limits of the human body
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Elizabeth Streb
Photograph by Alyssa Goodman

In a New Yorker profile earlier this year, Elizabeth Streb admitted, “What I do is perceived as transgressive to the body, maybe harmful.” Over the course of her career, the radical 65-year-old choreographer and (now-retired) dancer has explored explosive and daring movements that she calls “extreme action.” In Forces, performers scramble up walls; dodge swinging metal beams; and fall, again and again, sometimes from great heights. If the MacArthur Genius Grant winner’s work tells a story, it’s that of the physical limits of the human body—and how far she and her dancers can push them.

On the calendar: Choreographer Elizabeth Streb presents her “extreme action heroes” at the Ferst Center from October 8-9.

This article originally appeared in our October 2015 issue under the headline “Fearless.”

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