June 2014- Aug 2015
Life at the Circus, the career path less traveled
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| Silks at Gasworks |
Finishing my time in college, I was faced with the very obvious
realization which I am sure hit many people in their 20s. First, as people time
is our most precious and limited commodity, and that sometimes living one’s
life well, doesn’t mean following all of the typical steps to success. I know that that may seem cliché but I
think it is something that gets forgotten on a daily basis, especially when it
comes to looking for jobs and getting caught up in ideas of what we are
expected to do. Being a business
major, this was especially evident as I saw my classmates chasing after jobs
and networking opportunities. They all seemed to have such grand plans while I
felt as if I had few connections and fewer opportunities. Every time I thought
I had narrowed down my options or come across what I thought would be the
career path for me, suddenly things would change and all my planning would fall
through. Eventually however, I
ended up in the most unexpected and serendipitous of situations-the
circus. Since then I have realized
that God has never failed to screw up my plans for something better.
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| My mom's first swing on trapeze |
Since “joining the circus,” I have gotten a lot of
questions, particularly from my parents and their friends, of what exactly I do
and how exactly I am utilizing my very expensive college education. Here’s how:
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| New Years Show |
I live in a circus school, known by its occupants as The
Monkey House. It kind of reminds me of a college dorm, but with far less rules
and far more fun equipment to play on.
It is unique to be living with your boss and coworkers, but it’s also
pretty amazing to be thrown in to such a tight community of people who share
the same passions. Yes, some of my coworkers consist of acrobats with dread locks
and rainbow hair: dressed in spandex rather than suits, but that suits me just
fine. I am in a beautiful city, surrounded by amazing people, in an ideal
environment to share God’s love with the people around me (most circus people
aren’t you’re average church go-er). I love my colorful life. There is always something to do, new
things to learn, and everyone lives in the mindset of trying to achieve the
impossible. That’s not to say it’s
perfect or that I will be here forever, but if God can take me from being in
despair over where I would live and work and put me in a place where I feel
more at home than ever; I have no doubt that when the next phase of life comes,
He will do so again.
As far as what I do, most of my time consists of working and
training. I teach flying trapeze,
tumbling, and aerial silks classes, as well as working in administration. Even when I’m not officially working
though, I’m usually in the gym. As part of the Monkey House staff we are
expected to train several times a week and contribute to the school in whatever
ways we can. For an ex-athlete,
living in a gym is pretty awesome.
I get to train almost every day and have discovered that regular person
strong and aerial strong are two very different things. Thanks to trapeze I’ve also finally
found out where my lats are. One of
the coolest experiences I’ve gotten to have since being here, is being part of
our Halloween circus show: Carnevolar V. I also have gotten to perform ambient aerial on silks for
several corporate events, parties and even a wedding.
 |
| Summer camp kids |
I also had the unique opportunity of putting together the studios first circus summer camp for kids. So I did get to use some of my business sense and although some things could have gone smoother; the camp sold out and was overall a smashing success! Teaching adults all this time has made parts of me miss kids but at the same time I really appreciate my adult students, who are super sweet, dedicated, and don't require me running around monitoring turns.
 |
| 2015 Student Show |
 |
Aerial crew at a wedding
(the wine was delicious) |
I think one of the things I appreciate most about it all is the community, not only among the staff, but students as well. We are always getting care packages, especially from our flying trapeze students. Sometimes it makes me feel like they think of us as orphans a bit but free food and random gifts are pretty awesome.
The staff is pretty great as well. I was surprised by the variety of people that end up here. Most of us weren't born into circus by any means. Lots of people have had other career paths, from engineers and gourmet chefs, to financial advisors. Some are ex-athletes who wanted to keep challenging themselves; others are just people who wanted to travel and do something other than a 9-5 job. I was surprised by just how many people rotate through the studio. Most of the time someone is coming or going, getting a contract somewhere else to perform, or going back to their home cities to train. I suppose circus has always attracted more nomadic people, and although I wish I got to spend longer with some of them it is awesome getting to meet so many people from all over. The circus community tends to be pretty small and very international. In a year at the studio I met all kinds of performers and teachers from all over the world.
As far as what I do, most of my time consists of working and
training. I teach flying trapeze,
tumbling, and aerial silks classes, as well as working in administration. Even when I’m not officially working
though, I’m usually in the gym. As part of the Monkey House staff we are
expected to train several times a week and contribute to the school in whatever
ways we can. For an ex-athlete,
living in a gym is pretty awesome.
I get to train almost every day and have discovered that regular person
strong and aerial strong are two very different things. Thanks to trapeze I’ve also finally
found out where my lats are. One of
the coolest experiences I’ve gotten to have since being here, is being part of
our Halloween circus show: Carnevolar V. I also have gotten to perform ambient aerial on silks for
several corporate events, parties and even a wedding. 
I also had the unique opportunity of putting together the studios first circus summer camp for kids. So I did get to use some of my business sense and although some things could have gone smoother; the camp sold out and was overall a smashing success! Teaching adults all this time has made parts of me miss kids but at the same time I really appreciate my adult students, who are super sweet, dedicated, and don't require me running around monitoring turns.
The staff is pretty great as well. I was surprised by the variety of people that end up here. Most of us weren't born into circus by any means. Lots of people have had other career paths, from engineers and gourmet chefs, to financial advisors. Some are ex-athletes who wanted to keep challenging themselves; others are just people who wanted to travel and do something other than a 9-5 job. I was surprised by just how many people rotate through the studio. Most of the time someone is coming or going, getting a contract somewhere else to perform, or going back to their home cities to train. I suppose circus has always attracted more nomadic people, and although I wish I got to spend longer with some of them it is awesome getting to meet so many people from all over. The circus community tends to be pretty small and very international. In a year at the studio I met all kinds of performers and teachers from all over the world. 
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