Coach Erin & Elijah at AYCO!

It was Coach Erin’s first year teaching at AYCO and she led several Hoop Flow workshops. “All the kids at AYCO were really interested in expanding their circus skill set and were excited to learn more advanced hoop flow. It was a great experience to teach young performers who are excited about circus and their future careers” 

“It was an amazing experience, I’m so inspired by these young performers. I think we’re going to see a massive wave of talented youth circus artists. These circus performers are so dedicated and they are working on more and more challenging acts that are only going to get better in the next few years.

— Coach Erin

Erin also got the opportunity to participate in both a tightwire and partner acro workshop and is excited to bring what she learned back to AcroSports. “My favorite workshop that I took was a rolling globe workshop – which I’ve already introduced to my TumbleCircus class!” 

This year was Coach Elijah’s 3rd year teaching at AYCO, he taught Tricking, Parkour, Wall Tramp and an AcroDance class. He first brought Tricking to AYCO 2 years ago and is the only coach to teach this discipline at the festival, “I love that AcroSports is introducing Tricking to the circus community.”

“It’s great to see that this next generation really cares about circus and sees it as a viable career path. These kids are passionate and hungry and it’s fun to teach these young performers because they are coachable and talented.

— Coach Elijah

As a circus and performance center, AcroSports is part of a larger community around the country that is building youth circus artists. Many of the circus troupes that participated are also non-profits and provide a safe space for teenagers in their communities. 

AcroSports is an AYCO member and we hosted the Educators Conference two years ago. We’re so proud that our coaches represent AcroSports and the San Francisco circus community at this  prestigious youth festival.