News

Our studio stands in solidarity with the anti-racism movement.  For further information on where we stand on this issue, please feel free to watch this video from the studio

Jessie is excited to return to B.A.D. to teach a workshop in Aerial Sling. At this event, you will travel through a warm up, conditioning drills, and get acquainted with the hammock, beginner & intermediate positions, sequences, and drops.  We will also work on create smoother and faster spins on the sling (you don’t have to spin if you don’t want to).  Jessie enjoys combining her dance background with aerial work to create graceful transitions, and we will also work on building fluidity and expressiveness in the air.  We will conclude with some sling choreography. About Jessie: Jessie Soto is a professional aerialist, dancer, and circus artist. She holds a Bachelors degree in Dance from Buffalo State, and has been dancing for 25 years. She has been a dance performer with Free Soul, a circus and character artist with Showstarters Entertainment, and a solo hoop and flow arts performer. Jessie began her aerial journey at Buffalo Aerial Dance where she has been dedicated to her practice since 2018. She has been performing aerial acts at events around WNY for

The amazing students of Buffalo Aerial Dance did it again! We FINALLY had another showcase in our home studio to share all of these talented performers with you. The theme of this show was super rainbow-y and reminiscent of those snazzy notebooks and stickers that we all loved as a kid (and still)! This showcase featured a wide variety of people and apparatus, with performance on aerial silks, trapeze, aerial hoop, and aerial rope.  Performers ranged from those making their aerial debut to seasoned veterans and some of the B.A.D. pro’s.  We had a big representation of youth performers take the stage too! Here are some photos from our amazing photographer Fiveten’s Lens  

If you’re looking for a fun and creative gift idea that won’t clutter up the house, look no more! Pick up a gift certificate for our Winter Kids Camp camp, our Absolute Beginner Classes, or a private lesson or party.  Or snag some B.A.D. merch as a great gift for any aerialist. Gift certificates for any class or private lesson can be purchased online, and sent as a printable certificate to save you a trip!  Purchase a certificate by heading to our class calendar (links below), clicking the “Register” button, followed by “Pay without Login” and then selecting the “This is a Gift” box at the top of the payment screen.  We will contact you to ask if you’d like a printable gift certificate, or if you prefer to pick one up at the studio, or have it sent by mail.   Email us at buffaloaerialdance716@gmail.com for questions or custom gift certificates. Winter Kids Camp  — December 27 to December 30 We are offering a kids aerial winter camp during the week between Christmas and New Year! We are very excited to offer this 4 day

Craig Lewis of Night Owl Circus will be joining us in Buffalo to teach aerial rigging in this two part workshop. About Craig: Coming from a previous background in rock climbing and technical caving, Craig Lewis began his training in aerial arts in 2009 at San Francisco Circus Center. After returning home to Tennessee, he completed the bulk of his aerial training at Aerial Space in Asheville, NC, along with the Aerial Dance program at East Tennessee State University. In 2013, he founded Night Owl Circus Arts in Johnson City, TN. Today NOCA has 12 instructors, two locations, and classes running seven days a week. Craig was drawn to the rigging aspect of aerial arts right from the start. He has trained extensively under Delbert Hall, including taking his rigging workshops numerous times, and also working under him as an assistant on a wide variety of rigging jobs, including both acrobatic and theatrical rigging. Craig has also completed training programs with Brett Copes, Jonathan Deull, Eric Rouse, Todd Spiering, and Todd Gorham. Workshop Description: This workshop composed of two

We are back on the stage!  We kicked off the summer with two shows already, and there’s more to come! Big shout out to Paul Antonio for hooking us up with our first post-pandemic gig on Memorial Day.  We graced the skies at Yolickity Henrietta as Slyboots provided African drumming and dance, and acrobatics, on the ground, and Paul himself treated the crowd to some music.  It was a festive afternoon with blue, although windy, skies, and plenty of delicious fro-yo. Led by Hannah and Jenn, our Advanced Silks class rose to the task of putting on our second show of the season at the Lancaster Taste the Art of Music festival. Thee town of Lancaster was treated to a full slate of silks, aerial hoop, and trapeze performances as a part of the town’s festivities which also included live music and lots of craft vending.  As the breeze fluttered, B.A.D. aerialists stopped many Lancastarians in their tracks as the moved through the festival. Upcoming shows: We will be joining forces with Slyboots again for a series of performances at The Heron Farm and Event Center in Sherman, NY during

We are so excited to welcome Mara Neimanis to our studio for a this 4-class workshop series which combines an opportunity to deepen your expressive skills with the chance to explore dancing on some unique apparatus. Workshop Dates: Tuesday evenings 7:30 – 9:00 pm   April 27, May 4, May 11, May 18 Cost: $50 per class or $160 for the series.  Space is limited!  No refunds/cancellations. Prerequisites: Appropriate for all levels.  At least 1-2 months prior aerial experience is recommended. One of the apparatus that will be used in the workshop Description: Dramatic intention creates distinction in aerial performance that goes beyond tricks, supporting clarity and justification of choreographic choices and transitions. The ability to devise an intention in aerial performance endows the performer with more meaning and gives the apparatus a scenic life where images and metaphors can integrate into what a piece is about. Whether you are working on a circus routine, or choreographing an aerial dance piece, or indeed if you want to tell stories in the air, devising a dramatic

We hope that you are all weathering the storm of 2020 with minimal damage.  We’ve been keeping busy with home workouts, but we are missing training together and teaching all of you! According to the state’s reopening plan, dance and fitness studios may now be open. We are working hard and will start reopening with our coaches first so that they can be ready to start teaching lessons again and get used to the new protocols. We know not everyone may feel comfortable doing non-essential activities yet, and we are happy to continue extending the dates on your class credits until that time comes. We are excited to offer aerial training again, but there will be some very obvious changes.  Our goal is to continue to make high-quality training as accessible and affordable as possible, but we will have to more consistently uphold all registration, cancellation, and expiration policies (for newly purchased passes) in order ensure the financial viability of the studio. Here is our protocol for reducing the risks of COVID-19.   These precautions are based on the guidelines published by

As more and more people become interested in aerial arts, there is much excitement and also much confusion about the training process.  Here are a few things I’ve found myself explaining again and again: 1. Yes, you can do it! It wasn’t until the last decade that aerial arts became generally available as a recreational activity.  Prior to that, circus arts were guarded secrets handed down through generations of performers who depended on the uniqueness of their skills for their livelihood.  There are many fantastic feats performed in the circus that most of us will never do, but many people are surprised to find there are plenty of skills that are rather accessible. A favorite meme of aerial instructors everywhere. I’ve seen a lot of people delighted to discover that they can in fact do a beginner aerial class, reassured by the fact that we start just a foot or two off the ground with basic poses. However I’ve seen others frustrated by those same circumstances, expecting to be twirling high in the air right away.  Most of what we see of circus arts on TV or social media

We are taking things down a notch or two for the last stretch of this crazy year. Covid rates are up in the area, and the holidays are coming, so masks and social distancing are the name of the game. Some of our students and instructors will be spending time with family members over the holidays and we want to up our precautions.  We will be cancelling classes from December 16th until the end of the year. We plan to be back on Jan 2, 2021 with the same schedule as before, but please be patient as we make all the updates to the software. You will be able to register for 2021 classes soon! In the meantime, here’s what we’ve got coming up: Saturday 12/12  Regular Schedule Monday 12/14  Beginner Series class 5:45 – 7:00 // All levels silks 7:00-8:15 // All levels lyra 7:15 – 8:30 Tuesday 12/15 Regular Schedule Wednesday 12/16  No classes.  Open gym 5:30 – 7:00 // 7:00 – 8:30 Saturday 12/19  No classes.  Open gym 10:00 – 11:30 // 11:30 – 1:00 Monday 12/21 — No classes.  Open gym 7:00 – 8:30 Tuesday 12/22  No classes.