August 11 - 13, 2023
Aerial Rope & Fabrics Focus
with Molly Graves
Senior Instructor
Rope, Fabrics, Straps
Canopy Studio
Martin O'Connor Photography
Southeast Circus Retreat is a weekend program that is combining elements from a retreat, an apparatus meeting and workshop weekends. Here's how.
Retreat: This is time for you to work on yourself and be in a non-judgmental environment free of people that you might teach.
Apparatus Meeting: Like a rope or trapeze meeting, you can meet up with your friends from miles away in person to skill share.
Workshop Weekend: Tired of noodling around on the silks and need some instruction? That's why Molly is here! To give you some shiny nuggets to jump start your creativity.
Fee: $400
Price Increase to $500 after June 30
10% off for 3 or more participants from the same studio
Fee Includes open practice and all workshops. Must sign-up for workshops in advance.
Fee does not include accommodations and food.
Contact us if you need payment plan options.
Eligible Participants: Ages 18+ Must be a teacher, professional performer or an emerging professional (you have a day job but get paid to perform). Please make sure you meet the workshop prerequisites. *Note that all participants can take the weekend at their own pace, there is not a pre-requisite test, being generally comfortable with these concepts is ideal.
If you are unsure or have questions please email.
Open Practice: A time to personally train, skill share or work with a partner on anything from technique, choreography, business chats and other disciplines. The studio space and lobby is yours as long as you are respectful of volume levels for Molly's classes.
Housing Options:
There are hotels and AirBnB's nearby. More details to come.
Schedule of Events
Workshop Descriptions
Pre-requisites for weekend: Students should have a regular training practice on rope or fabric and strong shoulder engagement; able to do a 1 minute static hang & minimum 2 pull-ups, invert repeatedly with confidence in the air, and execute clean hip-keys and single star drop.
Momentum Basecamp: A Launching Point for Dynamic Movement on Fabric & Rope
Friday, August 11
5pm - 6:30pm
How do we start to approach dynamic movement on a vertical apparatus? We will consider common beginning (and ending) points for beats and momentum to help “connect the dots” in your dynamic flow — including front and back balance, crucifix and amazon, hip-key and crotch-key — as well as the foundational beat pathways.
Molly Graves
she/her
Molly Graves is a Tennessee native and recent Athens, GA, transplant who boasts a life-long interest in all things acrobatic. After completing the New England Center for Circus Arts ProTrack Program in 2012 with a focus on rope & static trapeze, Molly returned to Vermont in 2015 to teach on staff at NECCA as a lead rope and fabric coach for ProTrack. Additional teaching credits include the International Aerial Dance Festival in Boulder, CO; the International Rope Meeting in Barcelona, Spain; East Coast Aerial Arts Festival and Carolina Aerial & Dance Exchange (CADE) in Charlotte, NC; Atlanta Aerial Arts Festival; and collaborations with Susan Murphy at The Marsh Studio in Darien, GA.
Molly has had the honor to perform as a guest artist with Acrobatic Conundrum; at Circus Now’s International Contemporary Circus Exposure in NY; at the International Aerial Dance Festival in Boulder, CO, and at the International Aerial Acrobatic Arts Festival in Denver, CO, where she was awarded “Best Technical Performance” for her aerial rope act. Additionally, she counts herself lucky to be a member of the inspiring & empowering companies Girls on Trapeze and Big Teeth Performance Collective.
