Upside Aerial

Captivating aerial entertainment to make your event unforgettable!

If you hire Upside Aerial to perform for your event, you can expect the highest quality of aerial entertainment from our team of experienced professional aerialists. We will thoroughly discuss your event vision with you to make sure we deliver exactly what you want. Be sure to let us know your event theme, colors, and style so we can match our costumes, makeup, and performing to your vision! We will arrive 90 minutes prior to your chosen performance start time to set up our free-standing aerial rig (or rig from your venue's structures if you have us inspect your venue in advance to see if a safe aerial rigging options are available). We can perform indoors or outdoors (weather-permitting) and are fully insured. We can also add your organization and event venue as Additional Insured.

We provide mesmerizing aerial performances on Aerial Silks, Trapeze, Aerial Hoop (Lyra), and Aerial Sling. We also perform duo aerial acts (where 2 aerialists perform together on the same apparatus for extra excitement for your audience)! We offer 4 different service types (which can be mixed and matched however you choose):

1. Center-Stage Performances - meant to be a featured presentation during your event. These are typically choreographed to a specific song (average of 4 to 6 minutes long) and include exciting drops and amazing feats of strength and flexibility. Center-Stage acts can range from a single song to an entire show, depending on your event needs.

2. Ambient Performing - meant to help set the mood for your event and entertain strolling guests. Our aerialists perform slow-moving, mesmerizing shapes in the air for 5 to 10 minute sets. We can provide however many aerialists you'll need if you want to have continuous aerial entertainment for the full duration of your event.

3. Interactive - when your guests want to try aerial arts for themselves! We can teach your guests beginner aerial tricks one at a time on our aerial rig. Expect lots of laughter and plenty of fun photo ops! The only requirement is that guests sign our liability waiver (which can be done online in advance, or at the event from their phones). We reserve the right to refuse participation to anyone who may be inebriated or unable to participate safely for any reason.

4. Student Demos - for more casual events (like festivals, fitness & wellness fairs, etc). Our students love to show off what they've been learning in our classes! Student demos are a lower cost option compared to professional performances. Also, they are a nice add-on if you want a budget-friendly option for continuous aerial entertainment between professional center-stage performances. Students are volunteers only and skill level varies.

Upside Aerial began as an aerial arts and fitness studio. Professional aerial performer and instructor, Michelle Spurlock, opened the studio in Burlington, NC in 2018. Michelle was totally unprepared for how quickly the studio would grow or how much the demand for aerial arts instruction and performances would increase over the next few years! Upside Aerial was drawing students all the way from Winston-Salem to the Triangle. She began training, searching for and hiring instructors, and soon had a solid team of exprerienced, certified aerial teachers, many of whom already had vast performance experience. Upside Aerial originally began performing locally as a way to advertise their studio and get involved with their local performing arts community. But as demand for aerial arts performances continued to increase, Upside Aerial's team of instructors began performing regularly at festivals, weddings, corporate events, parties, and more. And thus Upside Aerial's performance division was born!

Our team now has many years of combined experience with professional aerial performances and productions, and we LOVE inspiring people with this beautiful, thrilling art form! Upside Aerial's talented team has been hired to perform by notable clients such as the City of Burlington, Elon University, the City of Graham, Imagine Circus in Raleigh, Sanctuary House in Greensboro, the Gallery Players of the Burlington Paramount Theater, and more!

For aerial performances, we provide a Circus Gear free-standing aerial rig which has a 20' x 20' footprint and reaches up to 23' in height. (Lower heights with smaller footprints can also be used to accommodate your event space. A minimum of 12 feet of ceiling height and 12' x 12' footprint is required at your event venue.) The aerial rig has rubber feet to protect flooring or can be set up outside. The rig requires 60 to 90 minutes to set up and another 45 to 60 minutes to break down when performances are finished.

If your event venue has rigging structures (such as exposed steel I-beams) and a way to access them (e.g. a scissor lift or appropriately-sized ladder), we can also rig from these structures. (Note this requires an assessment by our rigging team in advance, which will be included in the price quote.)

For musical accompaniment, we can use the audio equipment available in your event space, share our music with your DJ, or provide a portable audio system. Music is fully customizable to the mood, theme, or style of your event. If you let us know at least 4 weeks in advance, you can choose the song(s) you would like us to choreograph for your event. Or if you just provide us with the theme/mood for your event, we'll create something magical to match it!