Aerial Nerd Conference

ABOUT THIS CONFERENCE

Now going to be an annual thing, the Aerial Nerd Conference exists to explore deeper levels of aerial. We’ll put things into categories, find ways to compare and contrast, and build webs of connections and transitions. If you can count it, name it, analyze it, break it down, we just may study it here!

We have an incredible line-up of guest instructors -- scroll down to see who they are!!

​Come work your brain harder than your body. :) 


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****WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING ABOUT THE 2020 CONFERENCE****
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"I am having an amazing time taking all of these workshops and it's really expanding my mind in how I think about theory!!" 
~ Jessica

"My aerial knowledge & embodiment have grown dramatically over the two weeks of this conference. Taxonomy is a huge piece to rounding out aerial work for me. Thanks to Rebekah's guidance, I am breaking apart common moments on sling to discover exactly what is happening. This allows me to find unexpected pathways into & out of positions. The movement (which has always been my interest) can now be my focus rather than simply the vehicle to get to the next 'cool pose'. I am also, having a great time playing with retrogrades. I find that using retrograde when working on something new really helps me find the pathways in the new movement." ~ Chris

"The taxonomy stuff blew my mind! It changed the way I think about aerial and teaching. It inspired me to explore more, put fun back in training foundations, and has my brain working in new ways to inspire my students. I'm actually currently on a break from teaching but now I'm ready to go back!" ~ Tawnya


"I've wanted to take a class from Rebekah for years now! I was grateful and excited when they opened this year's conference to online students. It can be really intimidating to join an aerial class online, but Rebekah made me feel comfortable and welcomed. While I was familiar with the material we covered in class, we approached them from a totally different viewpoint and opened my eyes to new connections and ways of thinking. 10/10 will attend again."

"It is truly a STUNNING workshop series so far!  All that I could hope to geek out over, so much that I'm having trouble sleeping at night because I keep thinking of possible sequences. Super big awesome thanks for doing this conference online. The WHYS of aerial have always been my favorite part, and you give voice to some things I never had the ability to clearly categorize in the past. It's freaking fantastic."
~ Kristina

"OMG I learned so much! I have always loved finding new connections and having some real structure given to the foundational positions made my brain so happy! I'm already using so much of the content with my students and finding new ways to move while we are very limited with ceiling height due to COVID.

Rebekah has such a joyful and fun personality and I loved the sense of curiosity she brought to all of the sessions. I enjoyed the breakout rooms to get to know people and just appreciated the overall approach to the conference. Fantastic material!" ~ Sarah

"Thank you again for these fabulous two weekends full of so much of your intense hard brain and body work! What an amazing, inspiring, fulfilling, beautiful, fun weekend full of knowledge, community and connection." 
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 "All I can say is we were all in just such... Awwwe! Blown away at how much we were learning and how it was far and beyond our expectations of complete amazingness! I have so much admiration and respect for all of your hard work, time  and everything that you have done and created to connect and support the aerial community. 
Thank you!"
~ Heidi

"Thanks for these workshop weekends, it's been AMAZING and has totally changed my thinking!!"

"Great job on a fantastic inaugural conference! My brain is very full, and I loved meeting some talented people from across the country. Oh, and I have a new [aerial doll] to help me keep exploring! =D" ~ Missy

"I wanted to say the conference was awesome. So hard to take a pause for new things/inspiration.   It was really helpful to have a recording sent if you couldn’t attend, as I had to teach classes for most of them.  I am still getting through them as they are all packed with so much content in only 2 hours. Thank you so much for hosting and that you for sharing so many great things!" ~ Lora

"My students and I got a great deal of knowledge and joy from the conference, thank you so much for sharing your creativity and insight!  We've been having fun making Hip Key family trees in class this week, as our brains continue to explode and we discover new connections!" ~Nicole

"Your taxonomy approach helps me visualize the structure of the art better, me being an engineer; and it complements well my live instructor's approach, which is more about feeling how your body is moving and making that as smooth, natural, and effortless as possible." 

"Whether you are an aerial hobbyist or pursuing a career in the arts, a teacher or student, you will glean so much from and enjoy this conference! At a time when I was feeling plateaued and a little burned out, this conference breathed new life in to me. It changed the way I think about training and the way I want to teach and inspire others. It gave me the permission I needed to stop focusing on poses in and of themselves and rather explore and understand the movement, which I've always found more interesting to watch anyway. I enjoyed every workshop and feel as though I have months of interesting material to review!" ~ Tawyna

"I attended 2 hammock theory classes. I was familiar with the material for both classes, but we approached the material from a very different point of view. I typically approach the hammock as "action, consequence" rule set. Both of the workshops I attended took a different approach "here is the fabric, in what ways can your body move around the fabric". I thought it was very interesting and insightful." ~ Kassi

"I have been going back through all the videos and writing more thorough notes.  Oh my goodness they are even more amazing the second time around! It's like reading your favorite book or watching your favorite movie for the second or third time and finding something new each time! AMAZING! Thank you again SO much for this amazing nerd conference! "

"​There is no way that I could have come to Colorado for the real thing, time difference, small person and weather (outdoor rig) made it hard to be present at the actual time - so was brilliant to take part with the recordings. I've learned tons from just watching them, and have started practices some of the contents and the instructions are so easy to understand. Being able to watch so many people (being able to stop and replay) with commentary is fab!" ~ Sharon

"I attended both free courses. Rebekah's view on the world was oh so beautiful. I am going to always keep the Taxonomy vs. Artistry graph in my head to help organize my thoughts with Aerials. She opened my eyes to a few connections I hadn't made between sling and (my main apparatus) silk. She also confirmed that my way of thinking is not wrong at all. She mentioned how to cultivate this way of thinking in the beginner and it reminded me that when I first began aerials that my mind wanted THIS!
Thank you to Rebekah for sharing those 2 free courses:)" 

" I loved being able to connect with an instructor without having to travel. This conference was an affordable way to access aerial coaching from the comfort of my home studio. I'm already looking forward to next year's conference."

"The conference is a 'must attend' event for anyone looking to enlarge their fabric practice beyond the rote learning of tricks." ~ Carmen

"I love that Rebekah was real & laughs a lot. The breakout rooms at the beginning of each workshop helped to bring a personal touch to a virtual conference."

"​I always get so nervous before new settings with aerials... I doubt my knowledge sometimes. The online setting helped me reach out where I wouldn't normally have and I am extremely grateful for this. Just the 2 Saturdays in October has fueled me so much that this month has been my BEST training month all year!!"

OUR AMAZING GUEST INSTRUCTORS
MOLLY GRAVES
Molly Graves currently resides in Brattleboro, VT, where she teaches on faculty with the ProTrack Professional Training Program at the New England Center for Circus Arts (NECCA). Molly has performed as a guest artist with Acrobatic Conundrum; at Circus Now’s International Contemporary Circus Exposure in NY; and at the International Aerial Acrobatic Arts Festival in Denver, CO, where she was awarded “Best Technical Performance” for her aerial rope act in 2014. Additionally, she counts herself lucky to be a member of the inspiring & empowering companies Girls on Trapeze and Big Teeth Performance Collective.

Molly’s teaching credits include The 2018 International Aerial Dance Festival in Boulder, CO; the International Rope Meeting at La Central del Circ in Barcelona, Spain; Atlanta Aerial Arts Festival; East Coast Aerial Arts Festival and Carolina Aerial & Dance Exchange (CADE) in Charlotte, NC; Circus Juventas in St. Paul, MN; Canopy Studio in Athens, GA; Vault Festival of Aerial Arts in Houston, TX; and collaborations with Susan Murphy at The Marsh Studio in Darien, GA.
SOFIA RODRIGUEZ
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 Sofia has been expressing herself through movement since she was five years old, beginning with the study of Ballet and Jazz in her hometown of Monterrey, Mexico. She moved to Austin, Texas at the age of 10, and her involvement in dance was slowly replaced by other responsibilities. It was not until she was working as a 4th-grade teacher that she turned back to dance as a pastime. That is when she discovered aerials and contortion. After several years of practicing as a hobby, she decided to leave teaching and become a professional performer.
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She spent two years as an instructor and manager at Aerial Horizon, a circus arts studio in San Antonio, imparting her knowledge and passion to others while training for performances. She has appeared in many competitions and shows, including the Aire Festival in Mexico, a rendition of Shakespeare’s The Tempest, and numerous private events. Settled in Colorado at the moment with her three cats and husband, she is the lead instructor at AerialWorks Castle Rock. She is a rockstar who teaches all levels and all ages on many things! 
DREAM FROHE
Dream Frohe is an aerialist with a passion for thoughtful and dynamic movement. In essence, she makes a practice of joyfully hoisting herself into improbable positions for the sake of honest expression. Using her background as a gymnast, in addition to a life long interest in dance and other art forms, she brings strong technique and a fresh style into her work as a performer, instructor and choreographer. She has been teaching and performing aerial dance for over 10 years and is a regular instructor with The Bellingham Circus Guild, in Bellingham, Wa and Apex Aerial Arts, in Seattle.
MICHELE FRANCES
​Michele Frances, MPT, PT is a multi award winning Aerial Coach, Aerial Choreographer, Physical Therapist and Pilates Instructor. She has been involved with aerial arts, specializing in silks, corde lisse and sling for over 16 years. Coaching and performing from coast to coast since 2004, Michele's passion for diagnosing mechanical imbalances has enabled her to bring her students a unique quality, and individualization of instruction and progressions to their aerial practice.
Currently living in Austin, Michele offers online aerial skills and choreography lessons as well as Functional Movement Consultations. With a bachelors degree in Human Biology, and a masters degree in Physical Therapy Michele's coaching approach is strongly founded on anatomical and biomechanical efficiency and injury prevention.