A study and comparison of works by two creators of ritual performance—Anna Halprin and Lin Lee-Chen—provide insight into Richard Schechner's efficacy-entertainment continuum as well as how ritual manifests in contemporary performance. Through a close reading of the structure and performance quality of Lin's Miroirs de Vie (Jiao) and Halprin's Circle the Earth “Dancing with Life on the Line,” I look at both artist's efforts and results in creating ritual performance and illustrate what I believe to be their distinctive features. Contextualization of the work and the artists' intentions shed light on the possibility or scope of change effected by their creations. While Lin's highly stylized large-scale dance-dramas in many senses cannot be compared to Halprin's nature-oriented participatory community rituals, commonalities in these two works show a strong emphasis on bodily experience, indicating embodiment as fundamental in creating transformative performance.