Storytelling Through Circus

Today I ticked a huge item ticked off my to-do list.

As some of you may know, as well as a writer, I am also a professional hula hoop and aerial hoop entertainer.
I started my training almost sixteen years ago, when I saw an advertisement for circus classes at my local library on the northside of Brisbane. I had no history or experience with gymnastics, dance or sports. I started the beginners class at the Circa Training Centre in Fortitude Valley, Brisbane City. This course introduced me to a number of circus skills, including acro-balance, aerials, hula-hoops, and juggling. This training helped me to build my confidence and my co-ordination skills. I took an immediate liking to the hula hoop, and bought two for myself. Over the next two years, I continued to teach myself to hula hoop in my yard at home, while living between Brisbane and the Sunshine Coast. I continued my training at Circa, and also started taking classes at Vulcana Women’s Circus in New Farm, Brisbane (now Vulcana Circus in Morningside). Besides hooping, I trained in acro-balance, aerials, stilt-walking, Chinese pole, and performance techniques. I took inspiration from watching various YouTube videos, and from my collection of Cirque Du Soleil DVDs, and also learned a lot of my skills through used these resources. My very first performance was at a talent competition at Mooloolaba, on the Sunshine Coast, and soon after that I performed at the Caloundra Music Festival and Australia Day.

Over my years as a performer, I have had the opportunity to work at a number of major events around Queensland and interstate, including Brisbane Festival, the Ekka, Woodford Folk Festival, Caloundra Music Festival.

In 2013 I took a part-time job which inhibited my ability to be available for performance gigs, but in 2019 I started to perform again while living in North Queensland. Then the pandemic hit.

I started training in aerial hoop/lyra in late 2020, and had the idea to combine my hula hoop skills with this new apparatus. This has become my signature act. My performances always have a theme, even if it is just the music of the artist. I have been a storyteller all my life, and circus performance has become another avenue for me to tell these stories.

I wanted to get back into performance work in 2022 but with so many event cancellations, the time and resources required to send proposals to events and prepare for the performances/workshops wasn’t worth it. Now I am ready.

Over the last month I have been putting together a new showreel from aerial hoop and hula hoop performances I’ve done over the past year ( all of them at student performance nights at HAPY Studio). Finally, it is ready to be sent out into the world. I’m so excited to start sharing my new acts with wider audiences, and getting back to the performing and teaching work that I truly love. I take so much joy in passing on these skills to my students, and by inspiring my audience with my performances.