APAC 2024 Trainers
*More trainers to be added closer to the festival
Solomon Riversage
Partner acrobatics
Solomon is an internationally trained kiwi base known for the clear systems and structures he develops for acrobatic practice and tuition. Since returning to the southern hemisphere in early 2022, he has had a blast travelling around Australia sharing knowledge and skills. He will continue to do the same at APAC - just watch out for his rather impassioned rants and rambles about some obscure technical detail or another.
Maddi and Moose
Acrobatic Rock and Roll
Maddi and Moose were first introduced to Acrobatic Rock and Roll at APAC in 2019 they have since been to several training camps in France and Hungary as well as competing in Croatia. Most recently they competed at The World Games in America representing Australia in the sport. They work hard spreading their love for the sport, recently starting classes on the Gold Coast. Maddi and Moose are very excited to share the fun, unique elements of Acrobatic Rock and Roll that make it such an enjoyable sport.
Jared Rondeau and Alice McCairn
Cheer and Stunting
Jared and Alice are a cheerleading pair who have years of stunting and cheerleading experience. Jared originally hails from Canada but moved to Australia 10 years ago to teach cheer and gymnastics. He continues to coach, and cheer at Multiple clubs around the country. Alice started her cheer career after leaving gymnastics and skyrocketed to the top echelon of cheerleading in the country. With a 1st place at the 2021 cheerleading world’s under her belt she has become a great source of knowledge in stunting baskets and pyramids. The pair has recently earned the recognition of 2022 partner stunt National Champions.
Shona Morgan & Rachel Locks
Static and dynamic partner acro
Rachel Locks and Shona Morgan are a hand to hand duo. Rachel has a soft spot for helping poor animals in need and Shona occasionally falls over for no reason. It was a perfect match.
Rachel and Shona both come from competitive backgrounds. Shona, is an Olympic gymnast who performed with Cirque Du Soleil for 5 years. Rachel comes from a Sports Acro background, where she won three national titles. These days you can find them performing with Highwire Entertainment and One Fell Swoop Circus.
Simone, Emily and Bianca
L-Basing Flow
We are three humans from Melbourne who have been training and teaching together for over 10yrs. We have taught together at Women*s Circus and Circus Nexus as well as having a heap of fun teaching L-base flow at APAC in 2022. L-Base acro is our flow state! We're a bit obsessed with making people spin around, and are always looking for new connections between moves. We love fancy footwork and celebrate when we find a new 'gateway' trick that opens the door to a whole new series of flowy transitions, or genre of moves. When we're not balancing on the awkward outer edge of a foot, or breaking down a flow into tiny parts to reassemble a new, you can usually find Bianca - on a bike up a mountain somewhere, Sim - running around a hospital in a pair of scrubs and Emily working magic with her osteopathic hands
Lyndon Johnson
Hand to hand & Towers
Lyndon graduated from the National Institute of Circus Arts (NICA) in 2018 specialising in Hand to Hand, Group Acrobatics and Cyr wheel. He has since toured internationally with Gravity and Other Myths and Highwire Entertainment.
Tori Mclarty
Partner acro & APAC org team
Meet Tori, the dynamic acrobat, educator, and event organiser, whose enchanting spirit adds a touch of magic to every endeavour. Over the past decade, Tori has passionately hosted and coached at events worldwide, amassing a treasure trove of wisdom in disciplines like partner acrobatics and the art of human connection. Her teaching style, marked by inclusivity and meticulous attention to detail, beckons students into her world. Tori’s approach is an embodiment of generosity and support, as she intuitively guides and inspires her students, all while infusing an abundance of joy into every lesson.
Chris Carlos
APAC Founder & Base for Gravity & Other Myths and Rouge.
When Chris isn’t growing abs on his face, you can usually find him watching UFC, eating chicken and rice or complaining that his back, neck and shoulder are hurting. Chris sometimes teaches at APAC, but he mostly micro manages other trainers and hangs around at the lunge lines coaching sick tricks. Chris started APAC in 2014 and has a passion for connecting people in the acro community and sharing his love and knowledge of partner acrobatics.
Ellie Grow
Partner acrobatics and Handstands
Ellie trained in both gymnastics and sports acrobatics before falling in love with circus and moving to China to train at Beijing International Arts School. Passionate about the possibilities of art and creating, Ellie brings together technical training in hand balance, aerials, and acrobatics, with a passion for exploring new ways of inspiring and connecting with students, audiences, and other artists.
Amy Nightingale-Olsen
Duo acro and Icarian
Amy Nightingale-Olsen is a Flyer extraordinaire. She has world class experience flying all forms of duo, trio and group acrobatics. Specialising in Icarian Games (Human Foot Juggling) when graduating NICA in 2005, Amy expanded her repertoire to include Hand to Hand, Toss the Girl, Banquine & Trio Balance. She has worked all around the world for companies including The 7 Fingers, Circa!, Circus Oz, P&O Cruise lines, Dummies Corp & Highwire Entertainment. Based in Melbourne, Amy is a freelance artist who loves teaching & performing. Her teaching passion is in fundamentals and technique. Slow and steady with a “Drills get the Skills” attitude. She can teach you the beginnings of a handstand all the way up to Diamadov on top of a person.
Olli Simila
L basing flows & whips and pops
Olli was introduced to acro yoga in his hometown Oulu, Finland in 2019 at the local circus school. The new hobby became a passion and that passion grew into a completely new lifestyle. He has spent the past 2 years as a homeless acro-nomad traveling from one convention to another. Olli enjoys creating L-base flows that combine different elements like hand-to-hand, whips and icarians.
Amanda Lee
Originally from Ngunnawal Country, Amanda grew up training and competing as a national level artistic gymnast before eventually transitioning her focus to Contemporary Dance. After studying Dance at the Victorian College of the Arts, Amanda fell into the world of Circus and obtained a Bachelor of Circus Arts from the National Institute of Circus Arts specialising in Hand Balancing and Dance Trapeze. Amanda has since worked as an ensemble acrobat with companies such as C!RCA Contemporary Circus, Gravity & Other Myths and is currently based on Kaurna Land directing her multi-award winning independent company ‘Sound of Circus’, as well as coaching Handstands through her company ‘Amble Coaching’.
Fanni Csényi
4th times World-Champion and 3rd times European-Champion dancer in acrobatic rock and roll. I first encountered acrobatic rock and roll in 2009, which has since become an unbroken part of my everyday life. The music, the dynamic movement, the community immediately captivated me. I am a member of the most successful club of acrobatic rock and roll in Hungary. I started my career as a formation dancer, where I was a member of two well known formations in the sport, Party Girls and The Szupergirls. After the successes in team formation, I decided that I would like to devote more time to couple’s category. Since 2019, I have been competing in the highest category of acrobatic rock and roll, which is Main Class Free Style. I hope that during the sessions I can convey the energy and joy of acrobatic rock and roll!