Something's in the Air

"Let's be honest: the aerial acrobatic arts do have a certain sex appeal," says Lynn Coleman, owner of the Denver-based Aerial Fabric Acrobatics apparatus company and producer of this weekend's second annual Aerial Acrobatic Arts Festival. "There's a dance element, there's a gymnastic element, there's an acrobatic element, and there's...

By Colin Bane

May 10, 2012

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"Let's be honest: the aerial acrobatic arts do have a certain sex appeal," says Lynn Coleman, owner of the Denver-based Aerial Fabric Acrobatics apparatus company and producer of this weekend's second annual Aerial Acrobatic Arts Festival. "There's a dance element, there's a gymnastic element, there's an acrobatic element, and there's something very, very sexy about performers twisting and turning, getting wrapped up in silk and doing splits up in the air that appeals to both performers and audiences."

She's right: There's been a boom in aerial performance over the past dozen years, and it's shown up in everything from Cirque du Soleil to burlesque. But Coleman wants this to be "a competitive festival with the feel of a circus festival," so participants will be in work-shops all weekend; there will also be judged competitions in aerial silks and hoops, the trapeze, corde lisse (ropes) and more.

"I wanted to create an event so that some of the best professional and semi-professional performers could be seen by Denver audiences and compete and connect with and inspire each other," Coleman says.

Shows will take place tonight and tomorrow at 7 p.m. at the Oriental Theater, 4335 West 44th Avenue; tickets are $20 to $30. For more information, visit www.aerialartsfestdenver.com.
May 11-12, 2012

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