TOC Instructors
2026
Julia Baccellieri, they/them
Julia Baccellieri was born and raised in the Chicago performing arts community starting as a dancer at age 5. Julia is known for their unique movement quality and high level acrobatics. Julia specializes in dance, trapeze, chinese pole, hula hoops, and acrobatic dance.
Jenn Bruyer, she/her
Jenn enjoys the good life in the beautiful Kootenay Boundary area of British Columbia where she lives with her partner, horses, dogs, goats, ducks, and chickens. She is a multidisciplinary performance artist, choreographer, and coach. She has entertained audiences and guided students around the world including over 30 US states, China, Italy, Germany, Ireland, Scotland, Austria, Canada, Costa Rica, and Mexico since 2008.
Sierra Camille, she/her
Sierra grew up talking too loud and taking up as much space as possible. She’s embraced these qualities and turned them into poignant skills as a physical theater artist, aerialist, and clown. Sierra co-founded Levity Aerial Troupe and Skytopia Aerial Arts. Audiences have called her “an electrifying beam of positivity and happiness in this cynical world” Performance highlights include: Circus Nonsense, The Traveling Spectacular, Misfit Cabaret, and her original one woman show winning Best of Fringe San Francisco in 2023. Sierra earned a BFA in Theater Performance and a certificate in nonprofit management from Southern Oregon University. She’s currently the Programs & Communication Director at Church of Clown in San Francisco.
Saifee Ghadiyali, he/him
Saifee Ghadiyali is a dynamic duo trapeze performer and coach recognized for his emphasis on power, precision, and creative sequencing. With a foundation in high-level partner acrobatics and aerial arts, he specializes in dynamic skills, release moves, and fluid transitions. His teaching style is rooted in clear progressions, making advanced concepts accessible to all levels. Whether you're flying solo or with a partner, Saifee brings a supportive, detail-oriented energy to every workshop, helping students build strong foundations while exploring bold, expressive movement in the air.
Saifee began his circus journey in the mid-2000s in the Windsor/Detroit area and has since performed, toured, and coached internationally. As co-owner of Château de Cirque in Montreal, he is deeply committed to the development of circus arts and creating spaces where artists can thrive.
Now based in Denver, Colorado, Saifee offers private coaching and trains out of Circus Collective when not on tour. Most recently, he performed his duo trapeze act at Red Rocks Amphitheatre for an audience of over 10,000 people.
Naomi Graff, she/her
Naomi Graff fell in love with aerial at a young age and simply has not been able to stop. 13 years and a lot of training later, her aerial performances and instruction have taken her from Colorado to Nepal. In her pursuit of going to circus school, she learned gymnastics as an adult and worked with a variety of different coaches that all inform how she moves and teaches today. In the plot twist that is life, she is now (not going to circus school,) but pursuing a masters degree in Dance Movement Therapy, in hopes to combine aerial with therapy one day.
Shannon Gray, she/her
Shannon Gray is a Montreal-born but internationally raised circus artist who draws deeply from her studies in Authentic Movement, contemporary dance, and a master’s degree in East-West Psychology. Her passion for teaching has spanned 17 years, taken her around the world, and is fueled by helping artists find a deeper sense of embodiment, movement quality, and connection between the physical and emotional realms. She believes in sharing tools for people to access their own creative source and authenticity- allowing for more potent and relevant performance work to emerge. Shannon currently resides north of San Francisco where she runs two aerial programs and continues to work with both amateur and professional aerial artists through workshops, class series, and private lessons. She also has two blind cats who teach her everything she knows about everything.
Cirque Gravizoides
Leah, she/her & Bayard, he/him
Bayard and Leah have been performing together since 2017, bringing over 20 years of combined circus experience to the stage and studio. As Cirque Gravizoides, they specialize in duo-trapeze, duo straps, partner acrobatics, and inventive apparatus work, blending precision, creativity, and a sense of play.
They’ve studied together under DuoRose Trapeze (Chicago), Elsie Smith (NECCA), and MC Fournier (Cirque du Soleil, 7 Fingers) and now share their expertise through weekly DuoTrapeze classes at Gravity Aerial Arts in Denver, as well as workshops across the country.
Bayard’s teaching philosophy blends mechanics and magic: he sees circus as a living expression of classical physics, where grace and beauty in motion naturally arise from efficient, fluid transfers of energy. Artistically, he loves finding ways to make people laugh while hanging from the ceiling — and encourages his students to do the same.
Leah’s approach centers on conceptual understanding, helping students identify their strengths, challenge their limitations, and have fun exploring their aerial journey. Together, they create workshops that are both technically rigorous and joyfully playful, fostering trust, creativity, and growth.
Fully insured and based in Denver, Bayard and Leah are passionate about coaching and travel, and they can’t wait to share their duo experience with you at the first ever Trapeze over Colorado meeting!
Lauren Kehl, she/her
Lauren Kehl is a Seattle-based aerial coach, Pilates instructor, and GYROTONIC® trainer known for her technical expertise and innovative approach to coaching. She began her aerial training in 2008 and has been coaching for over 15 years, dedicating her career to refining technique and advancing coaching methodologies.
Niff Nicholls, she/her
Niff is the founder of Secret Circus Philadelphia, and has been coaching aerial arts for over two decades, specializing in progressions, technique, and innovative choreography across a wide range of aerial apparatuses. Known for her “aerial brain,” Niff has a gift for creating and envisioning unique pathways and sequences that challenge and inspire. Her approach is grounded in years of study, practice, and a commitment to helping aerialists—whether novice or professional—achieve their goals through thoughtful, progressive instruction.
Janelle Peters, they/them
Janelle Peters, (they/them) is a queer circus artist, choreographer, director, and circus coach. Specializing in contortion and aerial hoop, Janelle draws upon their background in martial arts, and dance to create work with the goal of leaving audiences feeling seen, and whole. In addition to performing and teaching independently and at festivals all over the northern hemisphere (so far), Janelle is a founding member, choreographer, performer, and first director with Oakland, California-based company, Hypothetical Circus, and the founder of Denver Scratch Works in Progress Showings.
Alongside their artistic and coaching work, Janelle creates materials and facilitates conversations about mental health, wellbeing, and systemic change in circus. This work stems from the question, “What if circus were KNOWN for valuing the wholeness and humanity of everyone involved?”. Janelle offers individual, trauma-informed, social-justice-oriented psychotherapy from a queer lens in their small private practice in Colorado, USA.
Across all elements of their work, Janelle pushes back on assumptions, encourages nuance, and prioritizes connection.
Kat Saxon, she/they
Kat Saxon is a loud and proud movement artist. Since 2011, she has been training as an aerialist, primarily on dance trapeze with experience on fabric and miscellaneous metal apparatus. She has performed in many showcases at Canopy Studio in Athens, Georgia, before moving to Atlanta and received her Nimble Arts Aerial Teacher Training certification in 2016 while working for the D’air Project. She is currently training and teaching out of Challenge Aerial, a studio located in historic Grant Park, Atlanta. She has learned from many artists in different parts of the country and the world, including Philadelphia, Vermont, Costa Rica and Spain.
She is currently an artistic director and co-founder of Crux Collective, a local Atlanta-based performing arts company, where she choreographed multiple works on herself and her cast members. She has also created acts showcased at Secret Circus in Philadelphia, Satarah’s Bloom Festival in North Carolina, and has played a starring role in many video projects during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Authentic movement and choreographing acts has always been her focus and her main source of joy within the aerial arts world. Through her choreography she wishes to have the audacity to move without fear or judgement, and through her coaching she wishes to empower others to do the same. Choreographing pieces and improvising to any music that moves her is where she feels she shines at her brightest. Her work revolves around *embodying her inner badass* and hopes to inspire audiences with what spectators have called “vulnerable and electrifying” aerial acts.
Sara Sparrow, she/her
Sara Sparrow came to contemporary circus through a background as a gymnast, an actor and performer in musical theater, visual artist, and as a classically-trained singer and musician. In her 20-year performance career, she has been a multi-disciplinary aerialist, an acrobat, carpet-spinner, chair stacker, parasol-twirler, showgirl, and chicken. She is the creator of Cirque de Crochet. Sara has been coaching circus since 2007, and is the founder of Sparrow Studios school for aerial arts in Olympia, WA. Noteworthy performance engagements include Teatro ZinZanni, TEDx, Teatro Circo Price (Madrid/Bilbao), Friedrichsbau Variete (Stuttgart). instagram: @cirquedecrochet
Camille Swift, she/her
"I have 15 years experience and am currently based in Chicago and teach classes regularly at Aloft Circus Arts as well as private lessons. I also enjoy teaching workshops outside of the Chicago area and have taught at Versatile Arts, The Artists’ Asylum, Airbound Arts, Sparrow Studios, SANCA, the Aerial Expo, the Iowa Circus Academy, Cirque Wonderland, Firefly Circus Academy, the Actors Gymnasium, Defy Gravity, Detroit Flyhouse, Fly Freak Studio, and Stomping Ground. My classes focus on dynamic form and technique, helping students develop a professional standard of creative and acrobatic movement."
Caitlin Wallace, she/they
Caitlin Wallace is a professional dance trapeze artist, movement coach, and Doctor of Physical Therapy student with over a decade of experience in circus arts. A graduate of NECCA’s ProTrack Program, she specializes in trapeze technique, mobility-focused flexibility, and helping aerialists develop healthier, more efficient movement. Her workshops blend body mechanics, movement theory, and creative artistry to support strength, flow, and longevity in the air.
Enya White, she/her
Enya is a seasoned trapeze artist and Guinness World Record holder, with over a decade of teaching experience. A graduate from the National Circus School of Montreal (2015). She has built a reputation for her unique trapeze style, most notably featured in Luzia by Cirque du Soleil. Enya’s influence spans 31 cities
across 10 countries, and she continues to inspire through her impactful online coaching.
More than just an aerial coach, Enya is an artist on an ever-evolving journey of self discovery. As a mentor, she guides others through the challenges of a career
in the aerial arts, encouraging them to navigate both the highs and lows of their journeys.
Sam Wilder, they/them
Sam Wilder is an aerial instructor and circus artist based in Oakland, CA. They specialize in creating narrative work and joyfully play with gender at every opportunity. Sam has over ten years of gravity-defying experience, and has performed in cabaret, ensemble, burlesque, and drag shows throughout the SF Bay area and beyond. As an instructor, Sam is driven by their passion to provide a safe, challenging, and fun learning environment for their students. They aspire to help their students work hard and laugh hard in every class.
Rae on Trapeze, they/she
Trapeze Over Colorado, Founder and Director
Rae (they/she) is a dance trapeze artist and aerialist who has been performing and teaching across the U.S. since 2014. Known for a movement style that is both powerful and provocative, Rae weaves stories onstage that fill the room with depth and emotion. As an instructor, she guides students toward self-expression and affirmation through movement, helping them build meaningful connections between their bodies and the apparatus. Rae is also the founder and director of Trapeze Over Colorado, an annual gathering dedicated to celebrating connection and expanding community through trapeze.
Rae regularly teaches trapeze choreography and lyra II at Denver Circus Collective in Colorado. Rae is most fulfilled when traveling and teaching workshops across the country.