TAS: Tell us about your history with The Aerial Studio.

AN: My family first met the Curtis's through All American Ballet, where my sisters did ballet with Zoë. The ballet studio began to incorporate aerial into their upcoming Nutcracker. After my sister Aubrielle was chosen to be one of the two hammock artists for the show, we began spending more time visiting the gym where Carmen and Gregg were coaching. Briefly following, I started taking basic tumbling and strength training classes with Gregg once a week. That was certainly one of the highlights of my week! After nearly a year of training, I began learning basic rope and trapeze tricks. I was eager to learn.

I continued working with Gregg throughout my foundational training. One thing led to another and before long, using the technique I gained with Gregg, I was able to do all the skills that any of the other aerial students could. 

Although, in the beginning I hadn't intended on becoming an aerialist (and I'm not sure that Gregg and Carmen expected it either), it became one of my strongest passions. 

TAS: Did you have any fears or any other feelings that held you back as you began practicing aerial? How did you work through them?

AN: Honestly, I'm not afraid of heights, I'm not afraid to fail, and I'm not afraid to die, because of the life I know I have beyond death. 

When I began aerial, I wasn't trying to become the best; I did it for pure enjoyment. I believe this is one of the reasons why my passion for the art didn't die down over time, but continued to grow. After I completed my first performance as a "jungle boy" when I was 14, I truly began to fall in love with the art of flying. 

TAS: How have you developed/progressed?

AN: Haha, Immensely! In the beginning, it was hard for me to even climb the rope once. Like anything else one wants to master, it takes time, effort, and dedication. For me, the hip key was the high point of my frustration with aerial. Mentally, I understood the "how to," but for the longest time I couldn't translate what I saw in front of me, into my body. Once I mastered it, everything else made sense. 

TAS: How long after you began practicing did you perform in your first show? What was that like for you?

AN: About a year and a half after I started aerial, I debuted in the Extraordinary Experience (The Aerial Studio's first big show in Ventura with top level staging and performers). It was thrilling! 

TAS: What do you hope to do with your aerial work in the future?

AN: I dream to someday have my own production company, focused especially for aerial, but I would like to incorporate all of the arts. 

TAS: Anything else you'd like to share? 

AN: I'd like to thank Gregg and Carmen for their continual support and dedication to making me the best I can be; Travis Newman for going beyond just being a coach, but also being a mentor; Autumn Phillips for her sincerity and genuine love, always wanting to see me succeed; and most of all Jesus for His unconditional love that He continues to show me!

TAS: How do you think that learning the aerial arts has affected your life?

AN: I believe aerial is not only physically a healthy activity, but also mentally. It’s an amazing way to express yourself and become more aware of who you are.

Not only has aerial provided me with a safe (which is ironic, because most of the time I’m dangling twenty feet in the air), non-competitive sport/art throughout my junior high and high school years, but it has also opened doors for my future. 

I honestly think that I’ll reap many more of the benefits from the hours I’ve spent training at The Aerial Studio in the years to come. 

The adult troupe recently premiered their first show on Valentine's Day of this year, aptly called "The Delicious Life of Love." The Aerial Studio was transformed into a dimly lit, romantic night club where patrons got to enjoy delicious food and wine as they watched adult aerial students perform a professional-level show that explored love in all its forms.

Many troupe members were first time performers, aerialists who have day jobs and practice aeral arts regularly simply for their love of it. 

We caught up with one of these performers, Andy, and asked what the experience of being in the show was like for her.

Name: 
Amanda Lewis (most of my friends call me Andy)

Profession: 
Analyst

How long have you been practicing aerial?
Not quite two years. I took my very first aerial class around June 2013.

What was the experience of being in the show like? 
It was all things-- It ran the gamut. It was wonderful, incredible, fantastic, fulfilling, exhilarating and rewarding. But it was also, at times, frustrating, terrifying and stressful. There were tears and breakdowns and there were hugs and laughs and words of encouragement. Above all, it was full of love, excitement and cooperation. And it was amazing. 

Did you learn anything about yourself that you didn't know before? If so, what was that like?
I learned I could do it-- that's the biggest thing. I don't have a performance background. I wasn't an athlete. I wasn't graceful. I didn't do dance, gymnastics, cheer or theatre growing up. I was the weird kid who read books and made art. I was the kid who got hit in the face during dodgeball in gym class. I think the last time I was in a "performance" as such, it was an obligatory class production of Hamlet in the fifth grade. So I wasn't really sure what was going to happen when I actually faced the prospect of performing aerial in front of real people. But I did it, and I'm incredibly proud of that.

What was your biggest fear? How did you handle it?
My biggest fear was [and remains] looking totally ridiculous and awkward-- without meaning to, of course. Rightly or wrongly, I generally feel that I move fairly awkwardly most the time, but it's hard to be that girl among such talented and gorgeous individuals and performers. When I first started, I had to bring myself across some mental/emotional hurdles about feeling awkward just to go to aerial class, and then again when I moved into the intermediate class, and then again when I decided I would put myself forward to possibly perform in the show-- and I ended up in two very different pieces! 

There were times I didn't think I could go through with it all, but I committed to give both acts and all of my partners everything I could and we did it together. I'm very grateful to all three women (Marya, Deidra, and Belinda) for asking me to partner with them in the first place. If I had to perform alone, it would have been easier to quit and give in to the fear and self doubt, but having partners and working as a team makes you accountable to more than just yourself--and it means that there's someone else out there going through all of the same struggles and triumphs and adventures with you. Working with such wonderful women gave me the confidence I needed to just accept that the best I had to give was plenty, and reminded me that many times, we're our own harshest critics. 

That, and rehearsing. Rehearsing, rehearsing, rehearsing. Once the moves are in your body to the point that you don't have to consciously think about them as much, you lose a lot of the awkwardness, I think. I hope. :)

Would you do this again? Why?
Yes. Totally. For all the ups and downs, in the end, all of the work for the show was worth it. Together we made an amazing thing that was [hopefully] an amazing experience for the audience, too. For most of us, this is not our day job. We don't do this for a living. We are all adults-- real people-- who come from diverse backgrounds and levels of experience and who fell in love with aerial. We put in hour after hour of training while balancing our jobs, our families and our outside lives to work on this project together. We dedicated ourselves to doing the best we can and I think we're all closer for it, but beyond that, I hope that someone watching was inspired by the show to try aerial or circus or to pursue their dreams and realize that the love of a thing can be enough, if you just make the effort and try.