Loading...
Mark Faje is a stand-up comedian who has performed with: Lazer Vaudeville, The Jim Rose Circus, Pearl Jam, Korn, Nine Inch Nails, Jane's Addiction, Marilyn Manson, Lucky Boys Confusion, Nelly, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Mýa, Kid Rock, Brian Setzer, The Ataris, Sugar Ray, and John Mayer. TV appearances include the Late Night with David Letterman, Comedy Central, Ripley's Believe it or Not, the Discovery Channel, NBC’s America's Got Talent, and Germany’s Got Talent. Cabaret performer The Box and The Act (NYC).
Camille Swift is a Chicago-based circus artist, specializing in static trapeze, dance trapeze, and aerial sling, with extensive training in traditional arts (ballet, piano, oil painting) and a few less conventional ones (breakdancing, Japanese swordsmanship). Her passion is creating acts that are highly skilled yet imaginative, expressive and visually striking. She speaks fluent French and has traveled to Paris and Montreal to train and develop her acts. Camille is also a visual artist, focusing in figurative oil painting, book arts, and collage. She has performed in AirOtic Soirée with Les Farfadais, CREACTIVE by Cirque du Soleil at Club Med Opio-en-Provence as well as performed multiple times at the Seattle Moisture Festival and various shows and cabarets across the Midwest. When not performing or creating, she works as a professional aerial coach, training her students in dynamic movement, efficient technique, building strength, flexibility and aerial awareness.
A self-described clowncrobat, Squid believes in using the awe-inspiring "impossible" nature of circus physicality to explore deep emotions and complex situations. Squid is interested in the grey areas between play and technique, juxtaposing the challenging physical and mental discipline of straps, rope, and hand balance with the visceral vulnerability of clown to create storytelling dance acrobatic acts.
Squid coaches and performs in Chicago, from cabarets and variety shows to cirque-themed nightlife. In 2023, they wrote and produced their first short solo show ("Perfect.") and debuted it at Cannonball as part of Philly Fringe. Squid is currently on tour with The CirqueUs "Stories". They know that in life and in hand balance the straightest line is often the easiest... But the squiggly line is usually more fun.
A multidisciplinary circus performer specializing in Cyr wheel and duo aerial. With a degree in dance from Oberlin College, she utilizes her background as a dancer to bring a crisp, complex style to her choreography that underscores her commanding stage presence. Currently residing in Chicago, Hayley performs across the city as a soloist in her many different disciplines, pursues duo aerial with partner Linnea Ridolfi, and tours as part of the ensemble for Brave Space by Aloft Circus Arts.
Chantal began her circus training at Wise Fool New Mexico in 2011, where she learned of social circus and gained a heavy thirst for circus arts. Soon after her discovery, she pursued her passion all the way to Chicago where she completed Aloft's Full Time Training Program in 2013. Since then, Chantal has performed partner acrobatics, aerial acts and acrobatic stilting as well as directed a local circus company and taught internationally. As an artist, she is passionate about duo work and creating engaging emotional pieces.
Liam is a 24 year old non-binary circus artist from Chicago. They discovered juggling at 8, subsequently ricocheting around every circus space in the windy city, falling in love with partner acrobatics, tumbling, and movement.
After graduating from Circadium School of Contemporary Circus in 2021, they cofounded Company To X For and Full Out Formula. They have been performing, teaching, and making shows since 2014.
headshot by Michelle Reid @mreidphotog
Dalia Shafie is an aerial rope artist based in Chicago, IL, USA. She loves using rope to tell stories of resilience and strength. Dalia started taking aerial silks classes in Cleveland, OH in 2014 and quickly became captivated. In 2019, she discovered that she loved rope even more than silks and it has become her primary apparatus. She is enamored by dynamic rope flow and lives for the float moments where she is defying gravity.
Her performance practice, rooted in improvisation and Butoh, walks a line between the everyday, the divine, the personal, and the political. In embodying in her art transformational memories, while simultaneously celebrating pop culture and the experimental, she challenges power structures and awakens viewers’ senses. Working both in a solo capacity and with collaborators, Sabbagh is equally attuned to individual perspectives and collective structures. In various configurations, these collaborators have regularly engaged in improvised performances, opening up new avenues for Sabbagh’s material and conceptual exploration. She is the creator and curator of Freedom From and Freedom To events that are improvisational performance environments which interrogate movement and sound. In 2021 Cristal was awarded a 3Arts / Make a Wave Artist grant.
Amy Mucha is a web and graphic designer with over 20 years of experience designing for print and the internet. She specializes in the creation of websites that properly support a responsive design – meaning that the designs will automatically adjust for different screen sizes and viewports – suitable for today's wide array of devices. Her graphic design services cover a wide range of products – brochures, business cards, logos, publications, mailers, album covers…
As a graduate of The School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Amy enjoys painting in her free time. She has also created several public art pieces that were on display for the Elmhurst City Centre.
Supergurl Images is a one woman show, offering full service graphic design and digital art services from concept to final. Jackie is a freelance artist from Detroit who has been living and working in Chicago for almost 30 years. She has juggled a wide range of clients from local not for profits to major brands to neighborhood businesses to friends and family and even local politicians, completing a variety of projects from logos to brochures to invitations and personalized greeting cards, signs, mailers and much more. Jackie loves to meet new people and formulate innovated and memorable branding and imagery for them and their brands/businesses. When not in front of her computer designing, Jackie also loves to draw, paint, and a variety of other crafts. In addition to her arts, she also enjoys powerlifting, plants and spending time with her crazy (but very cute) mini bull terrier, Ralph.
So, you're probably wondering how I got into this situation. Here's the TLDR; I'm from Boston, but not actually Boston. I'm from a suburb close enough to say that I'm from there. Anyways, I moved to Chicago, graduated from art school, and now work full-time as a graphic designer. No one knows what that means though so I end up wearing a lot of hats. At the end of the day I'm a nerd who loves to learn and come home to my two pet rabbits (ask me about them, seriously) and for fun I take recreational circus classes.
A hearder of cats and aerialists. Sarah comes from a background in theatre and general jack of all trades. Many eons ago they were called from the light of the stage to travel in the shadows of the wings. They traversed there for many years, learning her craft at UW- La Crosse, then moving between the exotic realms of Madison, WI, Sarasota, FL, before settling in Chicago, IL. After working in theatres for some time, they found herself called to a wilder cousin of theatre: Circus, and have never left. While they still don't perform, and prefer to help out friends from the background, she does enjoy tie themselves in knots in the silks or straps apparatus.
During the daylight hours Sarah does some typical office job that we won't talk about.
