Today we’d like to introduce you to Ashley Miller
Hi Ashley, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I started ballet at age 11 at Jackson School of the Arts. I had really big dreams that were pretty disproportionate to my late start (11 is late to start dancing if the goal is a professional career) the opportunities in my town, and our financial status. Jackson School of the Arts’ sliding fee scale was the only reason I was able to take classes. I progressed really fast and made it into their Junior Ballet Company within a couple of weeks, but I had a lot of messages that I didn’t have the right access to training or enough time. I ended up quitting dance at age 14 because I felt too old and too limited. This regret has been the main fuel source that has propelled me to where I am now. I returned briefly at age 16, where I encountered my first aerial lyra (hoop) performance at Jackson School of the Arts’ annual Fairy Festival. I remember thinking, “I could never do that” but I went home and researched places that taught aerial arts.
The closest place was 45 minutes away in Ann Arbor, and they catered primarily to adults. It had been reinforced repeatedly that it was too late to make anything of myself in the dance world, and that I was too old, so this seemed like a whole new world. I left dance again to focus on this new, promising avenue that did not have an age limit.
Since 2017, I have been commuting to Ann Arbor to train aerial arts. In the years since, I have trained at multiple studios in Michigan and eventually Ohio and Colorado for my teacher trainings. My first goal in both dance and circus was to be a performer. Performing will always be my first love. But over time, I realized if I wanted to do this for a living, I needed to teach. Teaching had never really interested me, I wanted to be in the spotlight. I saw that teachers were often active performers, and teaching could provide many new avenues. I traveled out of state for my two aerial lyra teacher
trainings & spent several years researching and training to become a teacher. I did this while working full-time as a grocery store manager, working towards my Health Science degree, and dancing with Dance Uprising, a professional dance company I found from my circus studio in 2019.
Because of this busy schedule, commuting to any of the surrounding areas to teach was not ideal, and none of them were hiring anyway. I found it very daunting to build something myself and would have been more comfortable teaching at a functioning circus studio where they already had equipment and class structure.
Where I live, there are no aerial studios or classes.
Jackson School of the Arts, the art school I grew up dancing at, was moving into a larger building and turning into a major pillar in the community. In 2022, I created a program proposal and upon their acceptance, have been continuing my education on equipment, program logistics and design, continuing my own training, and working with them to bolster this program. I am still dancing with Dance Uprising 5 years later and finding more opportunities for adult training as time advances. I teach occasionally for other studios around Michigan, offer online private lessons and nutrition counseling, still go to school, and have a YouTube channel centered around “Things I wish I knew” when starting aerial. I am proud of where I’ve gotten but I have much, much more I would like to accomplish.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
As much as it can be taboo to talk about this, the biggest obstacles were time and money. I couldn’t just jump in and start teaching. I had to work closely with the school to make the program appropriate for their needs while building a progressive 9-month program structure, which is unusual in circus. Usually, recreational aerial classes are offered on a drop-in or short-session basis. I offer occasional short workshop sessions, but our main program goes from September to June, following the school year. While this was tricky to adapt to, it was a blessing in disguise. Unconventional as it may be, I had noticed an enormous amount of growth from the students, age 7 to adult, because of the progressive nature of the program. Taking drop-in classes can mean more convenience with the schedule, but between drop-ins, a skill may be learned and not seen again for months or years. A progressive structure offers weekly accountability and skills that are built upon each other for several months, creating a more direct path to growth. This is not to say drop-ins are bad, I take them myself and occasionally offer them with other studios. There are just pros and cons, but I have found that I really enjoy the combination of new and returning students and seeing familiar faces growing over the course of several years. I have teens in my program who took my first session two years ago and have been with me ever since.
I am so grateful the structure of this school required this progressive format, because it has changed how I approach teaching and it has changed how I learn as a student.
Building this progressive structure was and is a challenge because there is so much time outside of work that is spent in preparation. I don’t play when it comes to safety and there’s no dollar value I can put on the safety of my students. Because of this, I am constantly taking rigging courses and educating myself on equipment, figuring out what is most important to budget for in the program, and continuing my education as a teacher. On top of this, I train multiple days a week in both aerial and dance to ensure I am growing as an artist first and foremost, so the program can grow with me. It can be stressful juggling everything but I would not trade it for anything. This is the most rewarding career I could have asked for, even if it wasn’t my ‘big dream.’ It has morphed into my dream overtime after making its way into my heart.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
At JSA, the main offering is the year-round program for kids and adults. Given my history, I am very passionate about giving adults a straightforward path to growth rather than a single, beginner-level option. For this reason, level 1 is split by age group but level 2 and beyond will be based on skill, not age. This may change over time depending on program needs but I want the adults to feel that we are just as invested in their growth and potential as the kids. I have met so many wonderful and dedicated groups of adults, many have just as many big dreams that should be nurtured in the same capacity.
Throughout the year, especially in summer, we have 2, 3, and 4-week workshops that allow students to try the class before committing all year, or as a supplement to their year-round class. Aside from the intro workshops, there are specialty workshops themed for Halloween or Nutcracker around Christmas and other themes or skill focuses.
I offer private lessons both in-studio and independently, in-person or online.
I didn’t put all my eggs in one basket, and knowing teaching usually isn’t enough to make a living alone, I went to nutrition school and I’m a Registered Health & Nutrition Practitioner. I offer online courses specializing in cyclical wellness and 1;1 online health counseling. My Bachelor’s is a Health Science degree in Health and Wellness, which influences my teaching style through an anatomical and functional understanding of the body and psychological aspects of learning.
I teach various workshops at other studios on occasion, but my biggest focus is the program with Jackson School of the Arts, and providing my community with access to this art form. I often joke about how everyone in my town can take aerial but me! I spent a long time wishing for aerial to be offered here and eventually was done waiting. I commute weekly to train with various, more experienced instructors to ensure I am well-rounded and continuing to grow.
What’s next?
This year, the classes we are offering are doubling. We are offering more aerial disciplines and wider age ranges. I am carefully developing a class for even younger students with very strict safety protocols and adaptations to allow them to get a “taste” and work their way up to a full aerial class. The emphasis will be on structured creative exploration that is age-appropriate. Next, I have had a ballet/aerial fusion in the works for over a year now. Ballet is of course my first love, and I have been finding ways to fuse the disciplines to complement each other for my own training. With JSA being an art school with a successful dance program, this class is going to be focused on using an aerial apparatus to improve technique, flexibility, mobility, and strength. It will be catered to the needs of dancers and aerialists alike. Eventually, we would like the program to offer class throughout the entire week alongside dance.
I am dancing with Dance Uprising, and excited to see the avenues that continue to open up through that. I have choreographed two pieces with them and looking forward to developing more as a choreographer and dancer.
This year has marked a turning point for my dance training, with the mindset around adult dancers shifting and accessibility increasing for higher-level adult offerings. My year is booked with dance intensives and circus training.
I have more plans for future courses, new classes, and becoming a larger aerial resource on my YouTube channel.
Pricing:
- $45/mo per class at JSA
- $70 60-min private or semi-private lessons
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/apothecaerial
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCXD7eNg_KY7n8DAOekK9Gpg
- Other: https://jacksonarts.org/classes-programs/dance-classes/
