Ceiling height: approximately 23 feet tall
Address: 10901 Mausel St., Eagle River, Alaska
Cost: $30 US for a 1.25 hour drop-in
E-mail: CirqueBoreal@gmail.com
Rigging:
There are 4 silks hanging from the I-beam. In each point, the I-beam is covered with cardboard. The round sling is wrapped around the cardboard (to prevent wear and tear) and hooked with the standard carabiner-swivel-carabiner combination followed by a rescue eight with silks. The floor is laminated wood but is covered with thin fold-up gym mats followed by crash mats. Strongly recommend using one of the two thicker crash mats as the other crash mats are quite thin.
Review:
From the moment that I wrote to this school to taking her class, the owner has been amazing. Stefany answered my e-mails quickly, made every effort to welcome me to her community and was very patient with my family when they came over to the studio to watch me strut my stuff. This is a small school in which the owner is operating like a one-woman show where she wears the hat of an owner, admin, web tech, instructor and performer. As if she’s not busy enough, she is also running for the House of Representatives. What a lovely and inspiring woman!
Besides the drop-in, I would strongly recommend paying the instructor in cash at the facility instead of registering online. It’s easy and less confusing for visitors who are staying temporarily. Plus, if you are only attending classes one or two times then you don’t need to pay the AMAC membership fee. I took two silks class and a drop-in. The warm-up was nice and brief. It included leg swings, arm circles, pushups, leg crosses, splits and pigeons. Afterwards, there was 1 climb of bicycle and 2 climbs each for French (or standard) and Russian. Cool down is optional and in your own time. The class environment is less structural, quite social and relaxed.
The tricky part about drop-in classes or multi-level classes is that everyone is going at a different pace. So, Stefany teaches different moves to different people. This is great for the student as they are being challenged; tough for the instructor in relations to class management. Although the class can take up to 10 people, I notice that not everyone will come in. Also, there’s a tendency that a few people will be late, which does happen as traffic is unpredictable. So, latecomers will have to do the warm-ups on their own.
At the time of writing, the school is looking for another location in Anchorage. They do rent a place in Eagle River, but you will need to drive there if you don’t live in Eagle River. The bus is not reliable and does not offer an evening service.