Albana the Contortionist

I did a Google image search for "ska" for a project mostly unrelated to this blog and this was one of the first results.

Though it diverted me from what I was working on, I had to investigate.

Albana is a student (a "scholorship student" according to the website from which the photograph came) of Ska von Schöning.

This photo barely hints at the things that Albana can do. If you are interested in contortion acts, I encourage you to view the full gallery. I am particularly impressed by Albana's ability to do other activities such as brushing her teeth or talking on the telephone while performing.

I've been fascinated by contortionists since a trip I made to the circus when I was a boy. I wasn't really impressed with the three-ring fare, but the sideshow was another story. One of the sideshow acts involved a young woman (a Gypsy, I think) lying down in an elevated box and then having wide blades inserted into the box. How she avoided the blades was not visible from where the audience was standing, but for 50 cents any of us could go up on the stage and look into the box. As I walked by the box, I could see that she had contorted her body in such a way as to avoid the blades. It was impressive and well worth 50 cents to see. I have a clear memory of her in her twisted pose looking up and making eye contact with me as I walked by.

You should also check out The Incomparable Ula, though a few of her pictures (here, here, and here) seem a little disturbing if you don't know what's going on.