Dancer's high: an experiential review of cannabinoid activity and improvisational street dance

Abstract

Dance performances in contemporary social settings are irremediably associated with substance use. From electronic music festivals to nightclubs and small gatherings, marijuana appears to be the primary psychoactive consumed among casual and professional dancers alike. Though some research has explored the effects of marijuana consumption on social disinhibition and creativity, these studies were conducted in laboratory settings divorced from the real-world scenarios in which creators consume Cannabis products while engaging in their craft. Indeed, the vast amount of available literature in the cannabinoid field is concerned with medicinal applications, generally overlooking the potentially valuable information that observational studies on popular marijuana usage can provide on the physiological effects of the drug. Desiring to delve into the interactions that Cannabis dosing has on dance as a creative expression, several career-level artists participating in Street Dance communities were interviewed on their exposure to and subjective experiences with marijuana and dance. Critical analysis of this experiential data indicated significant overlap in the mental and physical effects felt while being ‘in the zone’ to existing research on cannabinoid signaling, most relevant of which is the ‘runner’s high’ phenomenon recently shown to link physical activity with analgesia and euphoria through regulation of endocannabinoids. A corresponding ‘dancer’s high’ is proposed to portray how stimulation by Cannabis may lead to a self-sustaining state of increased creativity for dancers.