Bill Shannon

(United States)

Website: www.whatiswhat.com

Bill Shannon is known internationally as a conceptual, interdisciplinary performance and media artist. He considers his work rooted in street/club culture and informed by the fine arts. Bill is widely recognized in the dance and performance world, the underground hip-hop and club dance scene as well as within the community of artists with disabilities. His performance and video work have been presented nationally and internationally over the past 10 years.

For more than ten years, Bill Shannon has been making his mark on the most prestigious alternative stages in the U.S. and around the world, and waking up the streets of New York and Chicago with his kinetic exploits. As well as being a renowned dancer and choreographer, Bill expresses himself through video, writing, drawing and installations. Bill regularly presents shows in the United States and at contemporary art and dance festivals in France, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Finland and Jordan.

Bill Shannon was one of the creators of the Cirque du Soleil’s Vareki and has won numerous performance awards.

The New York Times wrote: Bill Shannon defies gravity as he floats above the ground, sweeping forward in smooth strides on titanium crutches. He spins, twirls, then freezes, looking like an oddly beautiful sculpture of flesh and metal. His gliding mobility seems almost magical.

As part of Abilities Arts Festival 2005, Bill Shannon was a featured performer at the festival's evening gala held at the Glenn Gould Studio. During the 2005 festival Bill also hosted a workshop that provided insights into his unique form of dance.