21 July 2008 on fox
Jim Pickles' other life .... is an interest in dance, yoga, and contortion. Here are images of dance (ballet, a "performance" of Swan Lake, jazz one, jazz two, and tap), my favourite yoga positions - plus a few experimental stretches, some yoga positions shown by my flexible friend Heather (page one, page two, page three), and photographs from the First, Second and Third International Contortion Conventions. Below are a few photos from my act at the Fourth Convention, held in Las Vegas on the 26th - 28th of September, 2006. A fuller set of pages will follow later in 2008.
(photos by Colin Strover)
I did a short dance comedy routine with the gorgeous Albana and Helena. It started with them doing an impressive walkover, and ended with me in a golliwog routine, where they held my feet and ran round in circles in opposite directions, apparently twisting my legs off.
See further information at the official pages of the ICC (http://www.icc-convention.com/).
I am increasing my knowledge of stretching techniques by taking workshops in the absolutely excellent Posture and Flexibility programme, devised by Kit Laughlin at the Australian National University in Canberra. The techniques described in his book Stretching and Flexibility (Simon and Schuster) form the most thorough and most effective programme for the acquisition of flexibility by adults - see my Posture and Flexibility page for a few photos from a recent National Workshop in Canberra. Click here for a PDF file (236 kB) of a talk I gave on the Posture and Flexibility pre-exhaustion stretching technique at the Third International Contortion Convention, held in Cologne in November 2003 (the original presentation included movies, not included here).
All pictures on my pages are by me and copyrighted by me, except where otherwise indicated. Photographs by me may be reproduced on other web pages, as long as the source is acknowledged.
Contact me for information on contortion in Australia - see also link to performers, Colin Strover's page and Pina Conti's page. For contortionists in Australia who are available for engagements: click here.
My email:
