Meet our Visiting and Affiliate Coaches

Guest Instructors

Visiting artists from around the region and beyond who join us for workshops and special events, offering students the chance to learn from diverse circus professionals.

Affiliate Instructors

Independent teachers who share their unique expertise through ongoing classes at RICS. They bring fresh perspectives and expand what our community can explore.

Affiliate Instructor
Leah discovered her love of circus at the Philadelphia School of Circus Arts (PSCA) at age
10. Since then, she has spent almost two decades training, performing, and coaching, and has been teaching at PSCA in a variety of roles since 2013. She works with children, teens, and adults of all experience levels, and loves helping students build confidence, creativity, and strong technique.
After recently graduating from medical school, Leah moved to Providence to begin her psychiatry residency at Brown. She is excited to become part of the Rhode Island Circus Space community and to continue sharing her passion for aerial arts! While she enjoys teaching all apparatuses, her greatest loves are aerial silks and rope. She especially enjoys coaching private lessons, where she can help students refine technique and work toward individual goals.

Affiliate Instructor

Eleanor is a multidisciplinary circus artist and educator from Minnesota and a graduate of the New England Center for Circus Arts. Her work weaves together intricate research and personal storytelling with dynamic movement, and has been performed all over the United States as well as internationally. Through nearly two decades of love for circus, Eleanor has developed a wealth of technical knowledge which she has shared with hundreds of youth, adults, and professionals. She believes that circus is a powerful tool for building community and connecting to the self, and that art is an essential part of life. You can catch her this October performing with Cyrkus Vampyr in Sturbridge, MA, or touring across the US over the holiday season with Cirque Dreams!

Liam Bradley is a juggler and acrobat from Chicago, IL. After attending Circadium School of Contemporary circus in 2018 they founded groups Company To X For and Full Out Formula with which they have been creating and performing their work internationally. They have performed with companies like Midnight Circus, Paramount Theatre Aurora, Circus Evo, Almanac Projects, and Fox and Beggar Theatre.

Maia is a Burlington, VT based circus artist specializing in lyra, silks, dance trapeze, hula hoop, and invented bar apparatus. She began her training at 9 years old at the New England Center for Circus Arts and toured with the Circus Smirkus Big Top Tour for three years as a teenager. Maia has performed with the New York Circus Project, Cirque Us, Catamount Arts, Muse ABCirque, and more! When she is not traveling or performing, Maia coaches lyra, silks, and trapeze at Murmurations Aerial Studio and Lines Vermont Dance Studio. She has also worked as an aerial and hula hoop coach for Circus Smirkus Camp, Upper Valley Circus Camp, Wheelock Family Theater, and more. She is inspired by exploring the power of dark femininity and sensuality through the combination of athletic and artistic disciplines.

Clara LaFrance is an aerialist and circus educator currently located in New England.
There is magic in the space where people learn hard things together and use those things to create something new. There is magic and power in the art that brings people together.
Clara is a believer in that magic.
She found aerial arts by way of street performance in 2005, when she met a small but mighty group of aerialists in the greater Boston area. She pursued aerial art at New England Center of Circus Arts Pro Track in 2009 and has been performing and teaching since, performing on tall ships, theaters, and parks across the United States.
Her classes include technique work and creative work, with steps and levels throughout to fit all bodies and all levels.
When she’s not in the air, she is often bicycling in the area, or in her art studio making stained glass.
She is a NASM-certified personal trainer and certified in cancer exercise.

Squid is a storyteller and multi-disciplinary artist who specializes in connecting with people. They were first introduced to circus in southern Brasil, where they trained under third-generation circus artist Lucas Chavarria, and now continue his lineage as a straps artist and hand balancer based out of Chicago. Squid believes in play and efficiency as the seemingly paradoxical but practical keys to sustainable technique, and has coached nationally and internationally, from Mendoza, Argentina to Dallas, Texas. Their current home base for philosophizing about the importance of squeezing your butt is Aloft Circus Arts and Chicago Center for Dynamic Circus.

Jonathon Roitman is a professional circus performer and coach. During Jonathon's high school years at High Mowing School, his interest in circus, especially juggling and partner acrobatics, continued to grow. He attended Circus Smirkus’ advanced camp for three summers, and was a founding member of the Flying Gravity Circus.
While studying at McGill University in Montreal, Jonathon attended a three-year pre-professional training program at the Verdun Circus School. After obtaining his B.A. in French translation and literature from McGill, he studied for four years at the National Circus School in Montreal, majoring in juggling. After graduating, he toured internationally, performing in over 17 countries. Highlights of his performance career to date include touring with Cirque Éloize (Rain), performing at the Adelaide Fringe Festival in Australia (Carousel and Clothesline), and working for the GOP Variety Theater in Germany (Karussell.)
As well as performing, Jonathon loves to share his passion for circus arts. He has worked as tour coach on the Circus Smirkus Big Top Tour in 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2021, 2022 and coached for Smirkus Advanced Camp in 2016 and 2020. In 2023 he became the Head Coach of the Smirkus Tour.
He has also coached for the Silver Lining Circus Camp for eight summers, and is currently the Artistic Director and Head Coach of the Flying Gravity Circus, a position he has held since 2012. He has also coached for the circus program at the Independent Lake Camp in Orson PA, the recreational children's program at the National Circus School in Montreal, SHOW Circus Studio in Easthampton MA, the New England Center for Circus Arts in Brattleboro VT, and has worked as a temporary movement and circus arts teacher at the Monadnock Waldorf School in Keene NH. Jonathon is currently employed teaching Circus Arts and Physical Education at High Mowing School.
Jonathon believes that circus is accessible to everyone, and delights in helping students reach their full potential. Included in his teaching philosophy is the strong belief that learning circus arts imparts many valuable life lessons along the way.

Anneken Jogl discovered circus at the age of nine and has been falling in love ever since. Though primarily an aerialist, they also love bendy acrobatics, tight wire and juggling (under duress). In 2022 they toured with Circus Smirkus, as an aerialist and character with glittery silver antennae. Together with Simone and Skye, they have so far developed and performed four original circus shows in their backyard. They are currently training in the New England Center for Circus Arts' ProTrack program, majoring in lyra with a minor in clown!
Anneken's favorite part of circus is storytelling and expressing themselves through movement. They view circus as an artistic medium, and drilling technique as a vehicle for expression. They enjoy playing with the ways images and stage pictures evoke stories and emotions, and they are constantly on the search for new and innovative material.
Fun fact, Anneken loves stargazing and has even built their own telescope! Their favorite constellation is the little horse.

Becky is a self-professed nerd for all types of movement, but especially for dance and circus. After injuries put an end to hard landings in her artistic gymnastics career, Becky decided that stuck landings were overrated and made the natural pivot to aerial arts where hard landings are virtually non-existent.
Becky began teaching aerial- and ground-based circus arts in 2011, and has taught with Frequent Flyers, Aloft Circus Arts, Circus Harmony, and Circus Smirkus. Becky is a certified Gyrokinesis teacher, a certified personal trainer, and is currently working towards completing a Gyrotonic certification.

Julia was born and raised in the Chicago IL performing arts community starting their circus journey at age 10. In 2014 they joined their first tour with Circus Smirkus at age 15. Julia graduated from the Aloft Circus Arts Chicago pro track program in 2016 and graduated from New England Center for Circus Arts’s inaugural 3-year pro-track program and tour in 2019. Julia then co-founded an Art Collective known as Third Eye Collective where artists in the New England area of many different disciplines came together to host shows and events. Julia then found their way to Denver CO to work with Frequent Flyers and Illuminar Aerial and Starry Night Productions. Julia is a strong and dynamic performer with a passion for Aerial, Hula Hooping, juggling, Dance, Hand Balancing, and acrobatics.
Follow on Instagram @julia.makes.art_

Maeve Beck is from Turners Falls, Massachusetts where she began her circus journey at nine years old at the New England Center for Circus Arts. Maeve has trained full time in NECCA’s ProTrack program and at The Sellam Circus School in the professional training program. She also specializes in hand to hand, contortion and hand balancing. She has traveled and performed throughout the country with companies including Live305 Entertainment, Santa’s Circus at SeaWorld San Diego, and has completed three tours with Cirque Us! Between performance contracts, Maeve instructs circus arts Circus Smirkus Camp in VT and at UVCC in NH.
Follow on Instagram @maeveccircus

Hand Balance & Hula Hoop, 2nd Cirque Us
Based out of Southern California, Tyler joined the Great Y Circus as an afterschool program in 2006 and has been with the circus ever since. Tyler has been traveled the world for bothacademic and acrobatic reasons.
In addition to attaining degrees in English and Spanish from Walla Walla University and a master's in Cultural Studies from Claremont Graduate University, Tyler has performed with Pippin, PaperDollMilitia, Queen Mary's Dark Harbor, The Amazing Acrobats of Shanghai, and Cirque Dreams: Holidaze, as well as Pomp, Snow, & CIRQUEumstance.
Tyler is also a multi-instrumentalist and sews many of his own costumes. He is delighted to join the cast of Cirque Us Stories for his next venture with Cirque Us.

Hayley was first introduced to aerial arts while getting her BA in dance at Oberlin College. Soon feeling more at home in the air than on the ground, she took the leap and moved to Chicago to pursue circus full-time in the Aloft Circus Arts professional training program. After the program she quickly became a coach and local live entertainment performer throughout the Midwest. As a member of Aloft's performing company, recent credits include duo trapeze and other ensemble disciplines at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival with the show "Brave Space", and she is resident aerialist for Chicago dinner show COPA Cabana at Carnivale. Her circus journey began with silks, but she has since branched out significantly with continued creative pursuits on Cyr Wheel, duo trapeze, juggling, dance, hand balancing and ensemble work. As a coach she loves to encourage students to think critically and engage in the theory of her own favorite disciplines; handstands, duo aerial and Cyr wheel.
Follow Hayley on instagram @hayley.dynamo

Doug Stewart is a professional circus artist as well as entrepreneur. Doug graduated from the New England Center for Circus Arts. As a performer he has worked for Circus Smirkus, Chicago’s Midnight Circus, Diamond Family Circus, AIDA Cruises and was a cast member in the first three Cirque Us tours. Doug holds a Bachelor of Arts in Business of Live and Performing Arts with a concentration in Touring Productions from Columbia College Chicago. At age 20, Doug founded Cirque Us. Doug is also a co-founder of the Upper Valley Circus Camp. Doug sat as the head circus coach for Circus Smirkus Camp and is the Artistic and Operations Director of Cirque Us. When not running Cirque Us, Doug stays busy touring with various companies throughout the U.S. and guest coaches at circus studios during his travels. When home in MA, he often visits Rhode Island Circus Space offering workshops and private lessons. He is an exceptionally versatile and highly skilled instructor with experience on all aerial apparatuses. You can follow Doug’s adventures on instagram @doug_stewartt

Jeremy is a circus artist based in Chicago who specializes in aerial rope, German wheel, and clown. His circus career began when he connected with the Gamma Phi Circus at Illinois State University where he trained, performed, and graduated before starting work as a high school English teacher. He spent his nights and evenings working as a circus artist before leaving the school system to pursue circus full time. Most recently, Cifonie has worked and performed with Cirque Dreams, Cirque Us, Westchester Circus Arts, and The Vampire Circus. Away from work, Cifonie often spends his time listening to true crime podcasts, making coffee, playing video games, and wearing mismatched socks.
Follow Jeremy on instagram @jermichalecircus