Our Circus Story
It all started with a young girl's dream, and a mother's dedication to do all she could do to be a good mother.
One day my daughter decided that she didn't want to be a dancer anymore; instead she wanted to run away with the circus and be a Chinese contortionist. Mind you, she wasn't Chinese and she wasn't a contortionist, but this was her dream.
Her Fairy God Mother had given her a video of the 4 little pink contortionists with Cirque du Soleil from their early show “Nouvelle Experience”. All she wanted to do was stay in her room and try to put her toes over her head. Then she started to get all the other girls at our dance studio to put their toes over their heads.
Needless to say, this was the beginning of a wonderful story and provided the vision for the establishment of our Circus Arts program.
As we took this journey through the years, we met many wonderful circus artists and trainers. Eventually my daughter ended up moving to San Francisco to train with Chinese contortion coach, Master Lu Yi, and Mongolian coach Serchmaa Byamba. After two years of intensive training, she became a respected dancer/acrobat/contortionist in the entertainment industry.
Meanwhile, I was not just the doting mother. I was up in a trapeze, learning something I always wanted to do…Aerial Dance!
So we established a Circus Arts program at our dance studio. As we began to train our dancers in aerial and contortion, it became very clear to me that these beautiful young students could achieve a respectable level of training and performance skill. Since my own daughter had achieved her dream, I set out to do the same for many other young people with their own visions.
Many years later, we aren't just training our dance students, we are training a whole array of energetic kids and adults who are in love with the circus. Circus training offers amazing physical fitness while having fun and acquiring really cool skills!
Our advanced students are honing their skills and are on the road to their professional careers. Dance & Circus Arts of Tampa Bay is mentoring them best as possible to ensure their future success.
They perform at Casa Tina’s Mexican Restaurant in Downtown Dunedin every Saturday and Sunday nights. They have performed for the United Way, Tampa Bay Times Forum, Dali Museum, Ruth Eckerd Hall, Curtis Hixon Park, Jannus Landing, Make A Wish Foundation, PARC, Big Brother/Big Sisters, the Children’s Heart Foundation, Saks Fifth Ave., Corporate Parties, and private functions all through the Tampa Bay area.
So this is our story. This is how it all started. If your child has ever twirled in the living room like a beautiful ballerina, or tried to fly through the air off the sofa, we might be the program for them!
- Beth Brier, Artistic Director
One day my daughter decided that she didn't want to be a dancer anymore; instead she wanted to run away with the circus and be a Chinese contortionist. Mind you, she wasn't Chinese and she wasn't a contortionist, but this was her dream.
Her Fairy God Mother had given her a video of the 4 little pink contortionists with Cirque du Soleil from their early show “Nouvelle Experience”. All she wanted to do was stay in her room and try to put her toes over her head. Then she started to get all the other girls at our dance studio to put their toes over their heads.
Needless to say, this was the beginning of a wonderful story and provided the vision for the establishment of our Circus Arts program.
As we took this journey through the years, we met many wonderful circus artists and trainers. Eventually my daughter ended up moving to San Francisco to train with Chinese contortion coach, Master Lu Yi, and Mongolian coach Serchmaa Byamba. After two years of intensive training, she became a respected dancer/acrobat/contortionist in the entertainment industry.
Meanwhile, I was not just the doting mother. I was up in a trapeze, learning something I always wanted to do…Aerial Dance!
So we established a Circus Arts program at our dance studio. As we began to train our dancers in aerial and contortion, it became very clear to me that these beautiful young students could achieve a respectable level of training and performance skill. Since my own daughter had achieved her dream, I set out to do the same for many other young people with their own visions.
Many years later, we aren't just training our dance students, we are training a whole array of energetic kids and adults who are in love with the circus. Circus training offers amazing physical fitness while having fun and acquiring really cool skills!
Our advanced students are honing their skills and are on the road to their professional careers. Dance & Circus Arts of Tampa Bay is mentoring them best as possible to ensure their future success.
They perform at Casa Tina’s Mexican Restaurant in Downtown Dunedin every Saturday and Sunday nights. They have performed for the United Way, Tampa Bay Times Forum, Dali Museum, Ruth Eckerd Hall, Curtis Hixon Park, Jannus Landing, Make A Wish Foundation, PARC, Big Brother/Big Sisters, the Children’s Heart Foundation, Saks Fifth Ave., Corporate Parties, and private functions all through the Tampa Bay area.
So this is our story. This is how it all started. If your child has ever twirled in the living room like a beautiful ballerina, or tried to fly through the air off the sofa, we might be the program for them!
- Beth Brier, Artistic Director