Hanging Out: Aerial Arts Club lets athletes share their passion for the sport

While most high schoolers are playing soccer or basketball, aerial artists are flying, falling and flipping at local aerial arts studios, Learning2Fly and KC Aerial Arts. Junior Eva Smith and sophomore Celeste Morehead can be found practicing death drops — spinning towards the ground — or illusion beats to a back hip circle transition, gracefully moving around a large hoop called a lyra.

In order to unite aerialists at East, Smith and Morehead founded the Aerial Arts Club this year. At meetings in Room 524, members stretch and share their questions or concerns relating to their aerial routines to help each other improve. According to Smith, going over difficult parts of a routine with other people can help reduce mental blocks.

“I love being able to help younger aerialists and be the mentor for them that people at my studio have been for me,” Smith said. “I wanted to provide a space for aerialists here at East.”

As she spun on her lyra for the last time with her best friend, Cassie Stevens at KCA in May, Smith felt the tears start flowing. After getting so close in only a year, she wasn’t prepared to say goodbye as Stevens prepared to leave for college. 

In that moment, Smith realized she wanted to be the role model for others — just like Cassie was for her, by pushing her to be better. Over six years, Smith has grown in her sport by practicing five and a half to seven hours a week. 

“We can’t [raise our apparatus] at school because the school would be liable,” Smith said. “But the goal is for aerialists to have a place at school where they can talk about certain difficulties, such as the physical strain outside of the studio.”

When then-10-year-old Smith broke her big toe, she knew she no longer wanted to do gymnastics, but she still wanted the sensation of flying and climbing that came with her competition team. That’s when aerial arts came into the picture. 

According to Smith, creating a community at East for a sport that most people aren’t aware of was important to her, so she sought to provide a space for people in similar situations to grow together as athletes. 

“I love getting to perform,” Smith said. “It’s a special opportunity, since most aerial artists don’t. This sport definitely means a lot to me.”

The sensation of being in the air — despite the silks holding her up — gave her the feeling of flight when she perfected her knee drop. She twisted in the air, ending in an immediate stop as she caught herself with her knees. 

Starting at 7 years old, Morehead knew she loved climbing. Whether it was gymnastics or rock climbing, something about being up in the air made her feel alive.

Despite the pain of the silks tightening on her and fear of falling, Morehead persisted. 

“It was scary when I was first learning, but it’s not anymore,” Morehead said. “I put a lot of trust in the silks. Even if you don’t catch yourself doing something, the silks will still catch you.”

According to Morehead, participating in aerial silks has given her a confidence boost, both in and out of the studio. She says learning new skills and executing them always makes her feel better and more accomplished. 

“I definitely am more confident,” Morehead said. “I feel better when I do silks because of the physical activity and the sense of accomplishment.”

Morehead encourages people interested in silks to sign up for a class, even if they’ve never tried it before.

“I definitely think people should just start coming to classes,” Morehead said. “It’s a lot of fun, even if you think you aren’t strong enough. Just come to the class, and you might surprise yourself.”