I first began exploring weight bearing when I played with my siblings and friends on my feet as a child or playing with my own children. However it wasn't until I was in my early 30s that I explored this again. In a desire to hang out and do an activity with a friend, I stumbled across Vulcana Women's Circus. It was here in my first circus essentials class I began lifting and playing with people on my feet and body.
I was drawn to acrobalance as well as handstands and tumbling. I enrolled myself in more acro style classes and found myself an acrobatic partner. We would train together outside of class, have private lessons and perform together. I had a few acro partners over a couple of years and each relationship had a different flavour to it. I tried acroyoga once at the Woodford folk festival with a friend but most of my acro experience lay in the circus realm.
A few years on while practicing, learning and becoming a yoga teacher, I met Renae Stevens. I spent my mornings attending her semi private yoga sessions and after I would share my acro knowledge with her. As we began developing an acrobatic relationship, she brought her laptop and said, "Check out these acroyoga flows on YouTube." We spent hours working out and copying sequences and adjusting them to suit our body dimensions. This love of the flowing acro movement had me heading to Montreal for my acroyoga teacher training level 1 and 2.
Acroyoga Montreal is a eclectic mix of dance, yoga, flow, grace and the unusual. It's creative flair along with the dynamics of the couple who ran it resonated strongly with the values I had established in my life and while attending Vulcana. Jesse based her husband Eugene and it was beautiful to watch this dynamic. It moved away from a very traditional circus acro relationship (and certain relationship dynamics in general) of big guy lifting a small girl. I am not a small girl and tend to base (humans of all sizes cause I can) so this ethos became a strong component in what I offered as a teacher and how I operated in life.
Renae and I had been teaching combined acro and aerial yoga classes before I left. This was probably the first of it's kind in the world as AntiGravity Aerial Yoga was still fairly new. Yet, once I arrived back home, we began offering classes, workshops and acroyoga retreats. Our retreats were located on the shores of Stradbroke Island running biannually. We held workshops in halls, parks and yoga studios. We also held jams and had a core group of 4 or 5 people who would get together and play regularly. I also attended, taught and assisted at the Australian Partner Acrobatic Convention several times over the years.
I also began hosting acrobatic teachers from around the world. Niko Douwes, a Dutch teacher from Partner Acrobatics came his first workshop in Brisbane 5 years ago. From there Brisbane has seen a number of teachers like Jill and Heidi (Montreal), Mimi (Partner Acrobatics), Ishine Gape (Partner Acrobatics) all came and shared their acroyoga love.
I too went travelling to train, learn and teach in numerous communities and continents in the world. I spent five months in Canada and the USA travelling in a van going to workshops, classes, jams, acro camps, conventions and teacher trainings. I attended Divine Play in Portland, the biggest acroyoga festival in America. I did cheer, sports acro, hand to hand training, acroyoga and circus acro. I also spent time in Europe teaching and attending workshops, intensives and conventions in Austria, Germany and Holland. I went to the Dutch PreConvention and Dutch Acro Convention which is one of the largest conventions of its kind in the world and has been running for many years. I got to see a lot of familiar faces and some I had seen on 3 continents.
My focus in classes is making movement accessible to everyone. I create a safe space to learn, draw on the principles of movement, encourage fun and playfulness while challenging the body and breaking down the steps to give clear and intentional instruction for all to explore and have a go.
Today my acroyoga teaching consists of teaching beginner and specialised workshops, short class terms, private sessions and teaching and assisting on retreats or acrobatic conventions. I also train several times a week with my acro partner as we create performance work that's both fun and thought provoking in relation to issues that are close to our heart. Acroyoga for me is about relationship. It is a way I get to explore my body in relation to another while having a chat and sharing about what matters to us in life.
I was drawn to acrobalance as well as handstands and tumbling. I enrolled myself in more acro style classes and found myself an acrobatic partner. We would train together outside of class, have private lessons and perform together. I had a few acro partners over a couple of years and each relationship had a different flavour to it. I tried acroyoga once at the Woodford folk festival with a friend but most of my acro experience lay in the circus realm.
A few years on while practicing, learning and becoming a yoga teacher, I met Renae Stevens. I spent my mornings attending her semi private yoga sessions and after I would share my acro knowledge with her. As we began developing an acrobatic relationship, she brought her laptop and said, "Check out these acroyoga flows on YouTube." We spent hours working out and copying sequences and adjusting them to suit our body dimensions. This love of the flowing acro movement had me heading to Montreal for my acroyoga teacher training level 1 and 2.
Acroyoga Montreal is a eclectic mix of dance, yoga, flow, grace and the unusual. It's creative flair along with the dynamics of the couple who ran it resonated strongly with the values I had established in my life and while attending Vulcana. Jesse based her husband Eugene and it was beautiful to watch this dynamic. It moved away from a very traditional circus acro relationship (and certain relationship dynamics in general) of big guy lifting a small girl. I am not a small girl and tend to base (humans of all sizes cause I can) so this ethos became a strong component in what I offered as a teacher and how I operated in life.
Renae and I had been teaching combined acro and aerial yoga classes before I left. This was probably the first of it's kind in the world as AntiGravity Aerial Yoga was still fairly new. Yet, once I arrived back home, we began offering classes, workshops and acroyoga retreats. Our retreats were located on the shores of Stradbroke Island running biannually. We held workshops in halls, parks and yoga studios. We also held jams and had a core group of 4 or 5 people who would get together and play regularly. I also attended, taught and assisted at the Australian Partner Acrobatic Convention several times over the years.
I also began hosting acrobatic teachers from around the world. Niko Douwes, a Dutch teacher from Partner Acrobatics came his first workshop in Brisbane 5 years ago. From there Brisbane has seen a number of teachers like Jill and Heidi (Montreal), Mimi (Partner Acrobatics), Ishine Gape (Partner Acrobatics) all came and shared their acroyoga love.
I too went travelling to train, learn and teach in numerous communities and continents in the world. I spent five months in Canada and the USA travelling in a van going to workshops, classes, jams, acro camps, conventions and teacher trainings. I attended Divine Play in Portland, the biggest acroyoga festival in America. I did cheer, sports acro, hand to hand training, acroyoga and circus acro. I also spent time in Europe teaching and attending workshops, intensives and conventions in Austria, Germany and Holland. I went to the Dutch PreConvention and Dutch Acro Convention which is one of the largest conventions of its kind in the world and has been running for many years. I got to see a lot of familiar faces and some I had seen on 3 continents.
My focus in classes is making movement accessible to everyone. I create a safe space to learn, draw on the principles of movement, encourage fun and playfulness while challenging the body and breaking down the steps to give clear and intentional instruction for all to explore and have a go.
Today my acroyoga teaching consists of teaching beginner and specialised workshops, short class terms, private sessions and teaching and assisting on retreats or acrobatic conventions. I also train several times a week with my acro partner as we create performance work that's both fun and thought provoking in relation to issues that are close to our heart. Acroyoga for me is about relationship. It is a way I get to explore my body in relation to another while having a chat and sharing about what matters to us in life.
