Welcome to Bloom Movement Artistry (BMA!)
We are so excited that you’re thinking about coming to take classes with us. We know you may have a number of questions about our studio, about aerial/dance in general, so we’ve answered a few common ones below. If you have any other questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us on social media or at hello@bloommovementartistry.com! We can’t wait to meet you!
I mean, this seems very cool. But I don’t even know if I can do it.
You will never know if you don’t give yourself the chance to try! At BMA, we very emphatically believe that circus is for everybody and every body, and we understand what it’s like to start from the very beginning. We have a number of different ways for students to get started on their aerial journeys; they are all friendly for beginners with no prior experience and regardless of their current relationship to activity and exercise.
I am differently abled, have a previous injury, have a “body thing”, etc. Can I still do this?
We have worked with many, many, many different types of bodies in the past and love to work with students on different options or adaptations to account for what our bodies are able to do. If you have a particular concern and feel comfortable sharing, we encourage you to reach out to hello@bloommovementartistry.com to discuss what options we have for you!
I’m afraid I’ll get hurt.
At BMA, safety is our absolute top priority. We take the safety of our students, our instructors, and our equipment very seriously, and when in doubt we always prefer to be over-cautious. We follow the highest standards in the circus industry when it comes to our equipment and rigging, and we regularly inspect every piece of our equipment and rigging setup to ensure their ongoing quality and reliability. Our pulley system was installed by a certified engineer, and all of our equipment has weighted load limits in the hundreds or thousands (if not tens of thousands!) of pounds. If we have identified any defect to compromise a piece of equipment, we will remove it immediately.
To keep our students safe, we believe very strongly in creating appropriate skill progressions for each student’s journey. This means we will be working on skills that are appropriate for your current ability level, finding ways to challenge and grow but in a way that is reasonable for your pace and interest. We start from the very bottom, quite literally. Of course, we can’t account for every single aspect of a class, but we take every precaution that we can to make sure you’ll be safe and comfortable, even outside of your comfort zone!
I don’t really want to perform or anything. Is that cool?
Absolutely! We encourage our students to pursue an aerial practice that fits their interests and needs. There is no pressure whatsoever to ever perform or be in the spotlight. We have a number of performance opportunities available throughout the year for students who may want to flex those creative muscles, but we have many students who have been practicing aerial for a long time with no interest in ever performing. Whatever brings you to the aerial studio is what we want to help you develop.
I don’t even know what to try! Where do I start?
It’s really up to you! We have two options for beginners:
- Beginner Series: We periodically will offer a four-week Beginner Series on either silks, sling, lyra, or trapeze – we generally have at least one happening at any given point in the month, but we offer them on a variety of different days and times. This series will build cumulatively over four weeks to start from the very beginning and give you a foundation of skills and concepts on an apparatus! We would encourage you to sign up if you’re able to make all four weeks of the Series. Please email the studio for more information on when the next Beginners Series will start and if you’re interested in enrolling!
- Foundations: We have a variety of Foundations classes and all of them are tailored for beginners. For a better idea of the apparatuses we offer at BMA, you can visit our Classes page and explore all of the different things you can learn with us! Each apparatus has specific components to them, but many of the skills you will learn will be applicable no matter where you start, and many of our students actively cross-train on a number of different apparatuses! If you’re not sure which apparatus to begin with, we suggest lyra, sling, or trapeze for folks at the very beginning of your aerial journey, and/or Strength Foundations for developing muscle & body awareness.
Where is the studio?
We are located at 6150 Old Pineville Rd, Suite B, Charlotte NC 28217 – between exit 4 (Nations Ford) and exit 5 (Tyvola) off of I-77. We’re inside a large warehouse building (we love our 26-foot ceilings!) in a gated parking lot. There’s a gravel parking lot out front or you can come inside the gate and park. If the garage doors are open, you can come on in that way! Otherwise there’s a regular door with a stained glass-style window covering which will open into our lobby.
View approaching from Archdale:
View approaching from Tyvola:
Parking Lot:
Feel free to park in the gravel lot or enter the gate and park in our lot, as long as you’re not blocking the doorway of any of the other businesses in our building
Studio Entrance:
Does the studio have…?
- Water? Yes! You are highly encouraged to bring your own, but we have a water machine and reusable cups available if needed.
- A bathroom? Of course!
- Free parking? Yes, lots of it!
- Heat? We do! We’re in a large warehouse-style building so it may get chilly in the colder months, but we will turn on the heat when it gets too cold.
- AC? At this point, we do not – however, we have a number of ways to keep ourselves cool in the summertime! We keep our big garage doors open, have exhaust fans going, and have cool towels in the freezer. We’re hopeful our AC situation may change in the future!
- Doggos? Sometimes! There’s a chance a fur baby or two may be at the studio, but this will typically be on particular days/times of the week. Please feel free to reach out to us with questions or concerns – we would only want our dogs to contribute to our students’ happiness and comfort, not detract from it!
How big are the classes?
This can depend! Some classes are more largely attended than others, depending on the time and day of the week. Most classes will be capped at 8 students maximum, and some may be as small as your own private lesson with the instructor! You may be sharing an apparatus with another student in class or you may have one to yourself, depending on the class size.
Our classes do have waitlists in Pike, so if you’re trying to sign up for a class that is already full, you can add yourself to the waitlist. We will enroll you if a spot becomes available prior to the 12-hour cutoff to drop the class without a late cancel fee.
What can I do to prepare? What should I wear/bring?
You don’t need to do anything in particular to prepare! We would encourage you to show up generally the same as any other type of exercise: hydrated, having eaten somewhat recently but not TOO recently, ready for action! As far as what to wear, students will typically be the most comfortable in clothing that covers their midriffs and backs of knees (to prevent fabric rubbing, etc.) Please bring water with you as well. You will not need shoes for class, and socks are totally optional and up to you – some of us love to do aerial in socks and some of us need to let those puppies fly free.
Things we do specifically ask: whatever clothing you choose to wear, please make sure your Special Body Parts are covered up. Please don’t wear anything with hardware (zippers, clasps, snaps, etc.) as these can damage the apparatus. Please remove any jewelry before class – your Fitbit/smart watch is generally okay to leave on, although we may suggest you remove it for certain things if we’re wrapping around the wrist.
What do I do when I get there? Do I need to check in?
When you arrive, you can put your belongings in a cubby in our open studio space. We don’t (currently) have a desk to check in, but an instructor will be looking for you and will help get you checked in. If there are apparatuses already rigged up, you can head over to the area of the studio where you see the one you’re taking (i.e., if you’re taking trapeze, look for the trapezes!) and hang out there. If you need help identifying your instructor or where your class will be, please feel free to approach any person in the studio and ask – anyone will be happy to point you in the right direction!
What happens during class?
Aerial classes (including Flexibility Foundations and Handbalancing Foundations) are 75 minutes long, and non-aerial classes (Strength Foundations, All-Levels Belly Dance, etc.) are 60 minutes long. Classes will vary based on the apparatus and instructor, but generally all classes will involve a warm-up and some light conditioning on the ground, an extended warm-up/conditioning on the apparatus, class content (could be a specific sequence, concept, etc.), and then stretching and cool-down.
Our Foundations classes have a pretty flexible pace, and you can take as many breaks as you want! The instructor will suggest a number of repetitions (reps) to do for different exercises or sequences, but if you need to do more or less, that is totally fine.
Additionally, our Foundations classes may sometimes be mixed-level classes, which means there may be groups of students doing different things during the same class. For example, if a brand-new student is in the same class as a student who has been coming to aerial for a long time, the instructor may have the brand-new student work on different progressions than the experienced student. You will always be working on content that is appropriate for where you are in your journey!
What if I have worries during class?
If you feel weird about anything at all while you’re in the studio, whether that’s before class, during, or after, PLEASE let one of our instructors (for your class, or any other in the facility) know right away. We want you to have the very best experience and will address your concern however possible!
Can I take a picture of myself during class?
We absolutely encourage capturing some footage during class! Videos can be a very helpful training tool to observe your form, and it’s really helpful to see your footage as you progress to see how far you’ve come! We have a number of tripods in the studio that you can use, or you can Macgiver your own setup (i.e. lean your phone against your water bottle) to take a picture or video of yourself during class.
Additionally, please feel free to share your footage on social media! Please tag us – we love to see what our students are achieving and we frequently will share or highlight students (with their permission). Similarly, please check out our socials to see what our students are up to!
Will other people be watching?
Nope! We do not allow any non-students to observe the class. The one exception is for our Youth classes, and we have an upstairs loft where parents/guardians can sit and watch class.
How often should I come to class?
That’s totally up to you! Our Foundations classes are not cumulative: for example, if you missed last week, that doesn’t mean you’ll be behind in material for this week. You can drop into Foundations whenever your schedule works out. Some students come multiple times per week, some students come once every week or two, some students come to class whenever they’re in town. It’s completely up to you – we’ll be here when you’re ready!
Okay! I’m in! How do I sign up?
EXCELLENT! The first step is to make an account on our Pike scheduling page and sign the waiver. It will prompt you to enter a payment method, but you will not be charged until the class time. You can then sign up for any Foundations class you’re interested in. We absolutely can’t wait to meet you!!!
