Workshop uses rhythms of the body to release emotion

Amy Fortoul's work expresses her painful battle with confronting her own sexuality and an eating disorder\n"This is my body, my heart, my soul and my struggle."\nThe IU alumna and spoken word and movement theater artist, utters these phrases in her original autobiographical piece, "This IS My BODY."\nThe work uses a combination of sharp, rhythmic hand movements and powerful, expressive dialogue, also known as spoken word and movement theater in her script.\nSpoken word and movement theater is a powerful art form that has been popular for quite some time in cities like New York and Atlanta but just recently has made their way to Bloomington. Fortoul attributes this rising popularity to the country's political climate. \n"Politically, our culture is more and more conservative," she said. "Spoken word usually has something being said that isn't mainstream about issues that are being ignored."\nNell Weatherwax, another local performance artist, is known for her original, improvisational show, "Dreaming on your Feet."\n"It is a tale of a high-strung girl from a complicated family before anti-depressants were cool," she said.\nWeatherwax holds workshops to teach others to tap into this emotional reserve. In the workshop, participants learn how to express themselves creatively while incorporating sound and movement. \n"The workshops create a community for creative expression ... I teach people how to create metaphors with poetry and movement," Weatherwax said.\nFortoul's workshops focus on the ability to abandon inhibitions and give in to the creative process.\n"It's about owning your creative impulse without your inner critique judging it, then putting it down on paper or in movement," Fortoul said. \nRachael Himsel, public relations director of the Bloomington Playwrights Project, was intrigued by Fortoul's show and decided to enroll in the workshop to promote her growth as an actor and performance artist.\n"During the workshop, I literally had an 'oh my gosh' moment about my past," said Himsel. "It was almost therapeutic for me. It helped me heal."\nFortoul is nota stranger to the healing process. She is a woman who was once treated for bulimia and suffered a wide range of sexually degrading experiences. Her experiences led to the development of "This IS My BODY" seven years ago. However, the show is not for her sole benefit.\n"This story speaks to all women and even some men," Fortoul said.\nAlthough it is hard to recount these painful memories for an audience, Fortoul said the most difficult part of the show is not knowing how the audience will react to the sensitive and frank discussion of drug use, oral sex and racism. \n"When you have the courage to look inside yourself at the darker stuff, there is beauty and self acceptance," said Fortoul.\nFortoul will be performing "This IS my BODY" for the last time in Bloomington Jan. 21 at the Buskirk-Chumley Theatre. The proceeds will benefit her national university tour.\n--Contact staff writer Eboni Gatlin at egatlin@indiana.edu.