Aerial as Butoh Practice

With Cody Hayman

“At a given moment I think a plant is about to be born in some corner of me… I can only watch and wait… All I have is the feeling or hope that it will grow leaves of poetry or of something that could become poetry when seen by certain eyes… it will be on guard against the mind contemplating it when that mind suggests too many grand meanings or intentions. If the plant is true to itself, it will give out a natural poetry it is unaware of.”

–Felisberto Hernandez

Butoh is an art focused on the body speaking for itself. Using elements from butoh, we will focus on finding empty space and stillness within our bodies and our movement, letting go of conscious choices to allow outside forces to act upon us, and explore elements of absurd, grotesque, and impulsive movement. This workshop will start on the ground before incorporating the rope.

Pre-reqs: Curiosity, an aerial practice, and a willingness to occupy vulnerable spaces.

About the Instructor: Cody Hayman found the circus in Olympia, WA in 2009, where he was a founding member of Airbound Underground and an instructor at SANCA. Though he started as a rope artist, Cody has picked up many other circus disciplines in the years since, including trapeze, hair hanging, and clowning. He has always had a passion for community-based circus performance, producing countless shows in Olympia and New Orleans, as well as performing and teaching all over the country for events like Sh’Bang, Atlanta Aerial Arts Festival, InFringe Fest New Orleans, and others. He has hosted NECCA’s rope meeting since 2023, and is the head rope and fabric coach for NECCA’s ProTrack program.

Cody’s approach to teaching mirrors his approach to performing: always with a sense of curiosity, enthusiasm, and a dash of flamboyance.