If you haven’t heard, Waverly Jones is coming to Lotus Fitness Studio! That’s right, all the way from Asheville to Orlando, this rockstar of the aerial world will be teaching workshops and private lessons. She graciously provided us with this great interview so you can get to know her better before you soak up some of her amazing instruction!
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Lotus Fitness Blog: Your aerial training includes an entire array of apparatuses. Obviously we have to ask, which is your favorite to perform on, and which is your favorite to teach?
Waverly Jones: My favorite apparatuses to perform on when I was performing regularly were silks and lyra. These were my first two apparatuses that I ever learned and I have created the most unique skills on them as a result. I would have to say that my favorite apparatus to teach is silks, followed closely by lyra. Pole was something I picked up along the way, and I also really enjoy teaching and performing on it as well.
LFB:
Why do you think lyra, silks, and pole have become (almost) mainstream, while more traditional circus apparatus such as Spanish web and trapeze have not? What makes lyra, for example, more accessible to the average person?
WJ: I would have to disagree about trapeze not becoming mainstream, as I see that field growing all the time in my travels. It really depends on the studios and what they can offer based on space and knowledge. It’s not a crazy long term goal for most to be able to mount and dismount a trapeze, which is really all you need to learn a basic skill set on that apparatus. I always say that Spanish web is not a recreational apparatus - it’s all or nothing. In my experience, I haven’t seen many people want to start with something like rope or Spanish web if they don’t have any sort of movement background. I think that other apparatuses are much more of a gateway for folks wanting to try circus arts and pole because they are way less painful, and way more commonly offered. People generally aim for the easiest & most pain-free discipline as they condition their bodies for more advanced movements & apparatuses. To be able to enjoy disciplines like Spanish web and rope requires the student to be able to climb, which many folks have to spend a lot of time learning how to do. Silks are soft and not incredibly painful to learn how to climb on.
LFB:
Everyone has a story for how they got involved in aerial. How did your aerial journey start?
WJ: I started taking classes in May of 2010. I was dating a guy who was in his 30s and still played soccer regularly, and that inspired me to get back into gymnastics as I had to give it up as a child due to financial restraints. I was 21 years old at the time and experienced difficulty finding a gym that would accept me into classes at that age. Around that time a friend mentioned seeing an aerial troop at a local music festival, and insisted that we take a class. I instantly fell in love and decided that’s what I want to do with my life. I performed with that same aerial company two years later at the same music festival.
LFB:
Do you think training in so many different forms of aerial helps you create novel movement? For example, does your background in trapeze make you more creative in lyra?
WJ: I absolutely do! I have come up with some really unique and innovative things from being crosstrained on several apparatuses. I find similarities in movements across the disciplines that I train and that helps me create new skills. When I used to perform on Spanish web, I would use skills from silks and pole to help create new skills on Spanish web. So many movements translate.
LFB:
What is your favorite context for performing? (ie-do you prefer competing, participating in showcases on a large stage, or doing small, studio performances? Or maybe just jamming on your own without an audience?)
WJ: Over the past couple of years, for several reasons, I have largely dropped out of performing. I now enjoy training for myself, and occasionally sharing my favorite things on social media (I also find myself losing interest in sharing a lot on social media, too). I felt like I spent enough time on stage, and at this point I mainly enjoy coaching and training things that I want to work on. I might do a performance nearby for a local charity or cause that I support, but for the most part I’m not performing much these days.
LFB:
What is your favorite thing about teaching?
WJ: In my experience, teaching is the most rewarding job. Aerial and pole arts have brought immense joy and purpose to my life, and it means the world to me to share that with other likeminded people. I love to connect with folks in the classroom and help them work towards and achieve their goals. I greatly enjoy watching my students progress and become strong and unique aerialists and pole dancers. Sharing my love and passion for movement arts is the best career I could have ever imagined.
LFB:
Your travel schedule is frequently crazy packed. If you ever get a little down time, what’s your favorite way to spend it? Any upcoming projects we should watch for?
WJ: My schedule has been full of travel lately! I really enjoy it. I love to travel and see new places, and I really like meeting new people and connecting with them through aerial and pole arts. My favorite way to spend my downtime is either relaxing and cooking at my house, or trading in my own studio, which I haven’t seen very much of lately. No big projects coming up, aside from extensive travel teaching my favorite skills.
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We are so grateful to Waverly for taking the time to provide these thoughtful insights into her aerial life, and we can’t wait to see her next weekend!