Description

About the Author

In 2003, Streb established S.L.A.M. (Stereo Lab for Action Mechanics) in Brooklyn, NY. The company performs in theaters around the country as well as in its own massive performance space in Williamsburg. Streb has received numerous fellowships and awards including a MacArthur Fellowship, a Guggenheim Fellowship, and on-going support from the National Endowment for the Arts. An actress, playwright, and professor, Anna Deavere Smith is the recipient of two Obies, two Tony nominations, and a Macarthur fellowship. She was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize for her play Fires in the Mirror. Appearing in several films including Philadelphia, Rachael Getting Married, and The American President, Smith has a recurring role on Nurse Jackie.

Praise for Streb: How to Become an Extreme Action Hero…

"Fearlessness and intelligence combined—that is what makes Elizabeth Streb's work so potent and beautiful."—Mikhail Baryshnikov

"[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

"Ah, finally an artist who is not afraid of handling live eels, confronting an army of rats or diving head first through a panel of glass! Elizabeth Streb also recalls carrying enormous pails of water back and forth from a river when she was 10, riding her first motorcycle at age 15, and how at 18 she once held a sheet-rock panel above her head for an entire afternoon waiting for a never-returning carpenter! 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