question: How are people able to become contortionists?
comment: As with most things it is a bit of both. Certainly with practice and technique people can become extremely flexible but only the genetically gifted can become the best. Basically it is just continually stretching until you gain a greater than normal range of motion.
passages: In the past, contortionists were associated almost exclusively with circuses and fairs, but recently they have also found work performing in nightclubs, amusement parks, in magazine advertisements, at trade shows, on television variety shows, in music videos, and as warmup acts or in the background at music concerts.
   The Ross Sisters were American contortionists most famous for their musical number in the 1940s movie "Broadway Rhythm". In addition, contortion photos and digital movie clips are traded by fans on the Internet, and several web sites provide original photos of contortion acts for a monthly fee, or sell videotapes of performances through the mail.
   BULLET::::- Contortion positions can be performed on a Spanish web, an aerial act consisting of a rope with a hand/foot loop that is spun by someone underneath.
  
  BULLET::::- Contortionists might manipulate props during their performance, for instance spinning hula hoops or juggling rings, balancing towers of wine glasses, or playing a musical instrument.
  
  A contortionist may perform alone, may have one or two assistants, or up to four contortionists may perform together as a group.
   The Contortionist has toured with many bands including The Acacia Strain, Animals as Leaders, Monuments, Protest the Hero, Born of Osiris, Periphery, War of Ages, Hatebreed, Between the Buried and Me, All Shall Perish, Veil of Maya, After the Burial, Within the Ruins, Revocation, Dance Gavin Dance, Reflections, Intervals, and TesseracT as well as Nothing More.
  
  Section::::History.
   A medical publication from 2008 suggests that long-term damage to the spine is common in long-term contortion practitioners. A study of five practitioners using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) by Peoples et al. documented limbus vertebrae, intervertebral disc bulges, and disc degeneration. Three of the five practitioners also reported back pain.
  
  Section::::Performances.
  
  Contortion acts are highly variable; many incorporate elements of humor, drama, shock, sensuality, or a blend of styles. Contortion may be incorporated into other types of performance, such as dance and theater.
   The Contortionist's Handbook
  
  The Contortionist's Handbook is the debut novel by novelist Craig Clevenger.
  
  Section::::Plot summary.
   BULLET::::- Rag doll act (also called: golliwogg act) - Circus act in which a contortionist, dressed in a loose-fitting clown costume, gives the appearance of being a limp, life-sized doll, as one or two assistants bend, roll, carry and pose the "doll" and then stuff him/her into a small box.
   Some loose-jointed people are able to pop a joint out of its socket without pain, thereby making it difficult to determine if a joint is dislocated without medical examination such as an X-ray. However, as long as the joint socket is the right shape, most extreme bends can be achieved without dislocating the joint. Actual dislocations are rarely used during athletic contortion acts since they make the joint more unstable and prone to injury, and a dislocated limb cannot lift itself or support any weight.
  
  Section::::List of notable contortionists.
   Education may take the form of office visits, lectures and written and audio materials. The content of the education includes the psychological and physiological aspects of TMS. According to Schechter, the education allows the patients to "learn that their physical condition is actually benign and that any disability they have is a function of pain-related fear and deconditioning, not the actual risk of further 're-injury.'"
  
  BULLET::::- Writing about emotional issues
   Section::::Basic biology.:Defense mechanisms.
   BULLET::::- Troy James - A contortionist who appeared in season 13 of "America's Got Talent". Troy has also portrayed Rag Doll in "The Flash" and Baba Yaga in "Hellboy.
  
  BULLET::::- Yash Shah - An Indian contortionist who appeared in "India's Got Talent" and can rotate his hands and legs 360 degrees.
  
  BULLET::::- Doug Jones - An actor and creature performer.
  
  BULLET::::- Irina Kazakova - A Russian contortionist and gymnast.
  
  BULLET::::- Jaspreet Singh Kalra - An Indian contortionist who has been nicknamed the "Rubber Man".
   The first step for most with the disorder begins with some form of physical therapy in order for the patient to gain more control over the affected areas. The therapy can help patients with their posture and gain control over the areas of their body that they have the most problems with.
   BULLET::::- Enterology is the practice of squeezing one's body into a small, knee-high box or other contained space which initially appears to audiences as being too small to contain the performer.
  
  BULLET::::- Dislocations of the shoulders or hip joints are sometimes performed as a short novelty act by itself. One example is lifting the arm to the side until it passes behind the head and lies across the top of the shoulders; also referred to as bonebreaking.
  
  Section::::Risks.
   Many factors affect the flexibility of performers including age, genetics, stature, and adherence to rigorous physical training routines. Most contortionists are generally categorized as "frontbenders" or "backbenders", depending on the direction in which their spine is most flexible. Relatively few performers are equally adept at both.
  
  Skills performed by contortionists include:
  
  BULLET::::- Frontbending skills such as folding forward at the waist with the legs straight, or placing one or both legs behind the neck or shoulders with the knees bent (called a human knot).
   This is a Marinelli bend in which the contortionist performs a Marinelli position with another contortionist doing a handstand on their top so that the former is holding the weight of two persons only by their mouth. This is considered to be an extremely difficult contortion act, and is exclusively performed by Mongolian or sometimes Chinese contortionists. The bend normally lasts for 5–6 seconds from the moment the Marinelli bend contortionist releases their hands from the floor.
  
  Section::::Triple Marinelli bend.
   Section::::Treatment.
  
  Experimental research for treatment has been mostly focused on facial synkinesis due to its abundant prevalence compared to extra-ocular synkinesis. Additionally, since the extra-ocular muscles are hidden within the orbits, there is a limit on the type of practical treatments that can be established (e.g. massage). Treatments for synkinesis in general include facial retraining, biofeedback, mime therapy, and Botox and surgery, as a last resort.
  
  Section::::Treatment.:Facial retraining.
   A peer-reviewed 2007 study with Schechter, Smith and Stanley Azen, Professor and Co-Director of Biostatistics in the Department of Preventative Medicine at the USC Keck School of Medicine, found a 54% success rate for treatment of TMS ("P".00001). The treatment consisted of office visits, at-home educational materials, writing about emotional issues and psychotherapy. The average pain duration for the study's patients was 9 years. Patients with less than 6 months of back pain were excluded to "control for the confounder that most back pain episodes typically resolve on their own in a few weeks."
   Mike Lessard of Last Chance to Reason took over vocal duties for upcoming shows until the band can find a permanent replacement. Mike Lessard commented on filling in for Carpenter:
  
  "I'm happy to be helping my friends in The Contortionist for the next few months on tour as a temporary vocalist. I'll be returning to my duties in Last Chance to Reason once these dates are finished in May. I look forward to seeing a bunch of new and familiar faces in the months to come."
   The TMS diagnosis and treatment protocol are not accepted by the mainstream medical community. However, TMS and Sarno's treatment methods have received national attention, including a segment on ABC's "20/20"; an episode of "Larry King Live"; an interview with "Medscape"; and articles in "Newsweek", "The Seattle Times", and "The New York Times". Prominent medical doctors who support TMS treatment include Andrew Weil and Mehmet Oz. Notable patients treated for tension myositis syndrome include Senator Tom Harkin, John Stossel, Howard Stern, and Anne Bancroft.
  
  Section::::Symptoms.
   The movements are always present but extreme episodes may be precipitated by stress, concentration or emotion and commence in early childhood.
  
  The condition is extremely rare and in a study in 1999 only 23 families in the world were known to be affected, although it may be under-reported. Inheritance is aggressively autosomal dominant. In at least two studies the condition appeared spontaneously in the families.
  
  The condition responds very well to regular botulinus toxin injections into the mentalis muscle which paralyse the muscle but cause no impairment of facial expression or speech.
   Contortion
  
  Contortion (sometimes contortionism) is a performance art in which performers called contortionists showcase their skills of extreme physical flexibility. Contortion acts often accompany acrobatics, circus acts, street performers and other live performing arts. Contortion acts are typically performed in front of a live audience. An act will showcase one or more artists performing a choreographed set of moves or poses, often to music, which require extreme flexibility. The physical flexibility required to perform such acts greatly exceeds that of the general population. It is the dramatic feats of seemingly inhuman flexibility that captivate audiences.
  
  Section::::Skills.
   BULLET::::- Morphea profunda involves deep subcutaneous tissue, including fascia, and there is a clinical overlap with eosinophilic fasciitis, eosinophilia-myalgia syndrome, and the Spanish toxic oil syndrome. Morphea profunda shows little response to corticosteroids and tends to run a more chronic debilitating course.
  
  BULLET::::- Pansclerotic morphea is manifested by sclerosis of the dermis, panniculus, fascia, muscle, and at times, the bone, all causing disabling limitation of motion of joints.
   Genetic mutations associated with (congenital) mirror hand movements are in the "DCC (gene)" or "RAD51" gene, which account for about 35 percent of cases. In DCC mutation, impaired or missing netrin 1 receptor protein impairs control of axon growth during nervous system development.
  
  Section::::Mechanism.
  
  There are three proposed mechanisms for synkinesis: aberrant nerve regeneration, interneuronal ephaptic transmission, and nuclear hyperexcitability.
  
  Section::::Mechanism.:Aberrant nerve regeneration.
   Section::::Tension myositis syndrome.
   Articulatory technique
  
  Articulatory technique is a type of Osteopathic Manipulative Treatment (OMT) performed by osteopathic practitioners and U.S. trained osteopathic physicians. The physician uses low velocity and moderate to high amplitude forces to carry a dysfunctional joint through its full range of motion, with the therapeutic goal of increasing range of motion. Usually this requires multiple repetitions of engaging the motion restriction, easing off slightly and re-engaging the motion restriction in an articulatory fashion.
  
  Section::::Pathophysiology of joint dysfunction.
  