Ego Versus Safety in Aerial Arts

The world of aerial arts is one built on defying gravity with grace that appears to be magic. 

Everything should appear effortless, easy. 

Just like filters used to alter a photo professional aerialists trick us into thinking it’s easy out of the box and when we take that first class and learn it is anything but the ego takes the hit. 

From that day forward some people are now in a constant battle with the ego and don’t care about doing things safely. 

When I began my journey into this world it was through aerial yoga, having a strong background in yoga and being a yoga instructor it made sense logically. 

From this standpoint aerial takes on a more healing role. It relieves pressure off your joints and allows the body to take on the stretches in a more holistic manner. 

But then you get a glimpse of an aerialist, maybe through a cirque show, the internet, a circus coming through town and now those gentle stretches aren’t enough. You yearn for more.

I always wanted to be a ballerina but my body was built for anything but. Maxing out at 5 feet tall with hips that rotate inward it was a reality I grasped very early on. But then I discovered the world of aerial dance. A blend of ballet type movements using an apparatus to help you dance above the ground. I was enchanted by the whole idea. 

I dove hard into this world, training hours a day and eventually teaching aerial yoga and conditioning to others. I began messing with sequences and was soon asked to help choreograph a piece for someone for a showcase. 

As a thank you my husband and I were invited to watch the performance.  The entire time he kept turning to me and asking me why I wasn’t up there. 

I’d blush and reply that I wasn’t a circus artist. Just an aerial yoga instructor. 

All my life I’ve had low self esteem and confidence issues, that I to this day am still working through. Unfortunately some of those closest to me as a child weren’t the most supportive, so I was always a bit of a wallflower. I loved performing but the thought of an audience terrified me. I was an introvert who had the need to perform. 

Well after seeing how fun that aerial showcase was and with the amazing encouragement of my husband I signed up for their next showcase. 

On the way to the first rehearsal I almost threw up and bailed. I was beyond scared. A room full of circus performers and I, just a little aerial yoga instructor. I felt so out of place, so lost and alone. 

But I didn’t quit. I wanted to learn more and dance in the air.

Over those 2 months I trained and rehearsed for hours a day amongst professional performers. I documented my journey  and am so grateful that I did. The growth I made in such a short time was impressive, not just in skills but confidence. 

Sometimes in shows they choose who they think is the strongest performer to close a show. There was so many incredible performers in this show I honestly didn’t even consider myself an option (and was totally ok with this. I was just so happy with my piece and how far I’d come).  It was later announced that I was closing the show, I thought it was joke at first but was very honored. 

I now run my own studio and help others prepare and train and create their own special pieces and I’ve observed a much different view. 

Social media definitely isn’t helping. Scrolling through pages and pages of flawless aerial pieces. Never a leg or toe out of place. Everything looks easy and effortless. 

Aerial has become so much more accessible now that anyone can learn it (which I absolutely love) but it can come with an ego check. 

A lot of times people come to their first class in shorts and tank tops (regardless of how many emails a studio sends to warn to protect the body, but after seeing “Susie” on Instagram do it in booty shorts and sports bras how could you think otherwise?

Then they learn how much grip strength is needed, lower body muscles that aren’t typically used in most sports are used, how important your core and upper body is. How the fabric of a sling or silk can burn you and the bruises the metal apparatuses leave. 

You feel beaten up and have the marks to back that up. 

But you look back at those flawless videos and then the ego comes in. Well if she makes it look easy then it must be. 

I will never forget a class I was teaching that involved a pullover on the sling. A woman walked up to me and said, I don’t want to train the trick I just want to do the trick to get a cool photo for my social media. 

I’m pretty sure my jaw hit the floor (my face never hides what I’m thinking or feeling). I instantly went through the whole memory montage of what I went through to be able to do this pull over myself. The hours and hours of conditioning and here this person just thought they could just bypass all of that for a cute photo. 

I tried my best to assist her in the safest way possible and when all efforts failed and she didn’t get her photo she just gave up and never returned. 

She let her ego win. 

It broke my heart.   Wouldn’t you want the hero story of how you worked so hard to obtain the strength and control to do that trick and have not only the cool photo but the video of you actually doing the pull over?

I have seen similar situations occur over and over again. 

Now the latest trend is doing the coolest tricks you can without any thought to skill or safety. One must now always one up the last thing they did.  Regardless if they look like they are fighting with the apparatus and their body. 

What happened to being ok with not being immediately good at something. Taking the time to properly build a foundation and the strength to safely do more advanced skills. 

We are now so caught up in this must be better than the rest that we now look at all level classes or intermediate ones as beneath us. We have lost the joy of the journey and the end result is causing people to get hurt. 

We need to flip the focus back to the journey.

Be ok with not being good at the trick.

Be ok with taking our time and earning the strength and ability to be in the more advanced classes. 

We should be rooting for each other, and happy for each persons accomplishments and achievements. 

We need to stop comparing ourselves to the flawless people on social media.  It’s all a facade. I for one can easily show you what’s behind the curtain of those flawless videos. Hours and hours of training and a ridiculous amount of takes for that video that gets posted.  Very rarely are those one take videos. 

Let’s bring back the joy of being humbled and to the journey.

Be ok with not being perfect.

Be ok with looking silly at times.

Be ok with not nailing something the first time.

Be ok with being human!

I also invite to video it all and watch how truly far you have come. I encourage all my clients to film. Especially if a sequence is fighting them.  Not to show them how they are struggling but for them to look back on when they have mastered that skill and can see how far they truly came.

We all need to work together and release the ego. 

-April Seed

Owner of Skylark Studios