What does it feel like during a routine? "It's like being on a rollercoaster, except the drop never stops."
When Cristiana Hoene '27 tells people she's a trapeze artist, she next has to tell them what she's not.
"'Oh, so you're a clown. You do the clown stuff.' That's a pretty typical response. I explain that we're the circus without the clowns. Though, in reality, we have clowns sometimes too."
About six years ago, Cristiana's mom celebrated a friend's birthday at I.FLY Trapeze on Long Island and she immediately thought of her daughter. Cristiana had competed in gymnastics as a kid, and she was therefore somewhat schooled in the aerial arts (though, nothing close to this), but she found gymnastics to be too competitive. Trapeze – her mom figured – seemed much bigger, but with much less pressure. She decided to throw her daughter a party at I.FLY Trapeze for her 12th birthday and she hoped Cristiana would like it. One knee hang later, it wasn't a "like" - it was an obsession.
"I thought it was the best thing in the world. They told me I was a natural and invited me to a student showcase almost right away."
When the weather is nice, Cristiana has been back almost every day since (before leaving home for Siena). Cristiana teaches classes (with harnesses for her students) and performs (without safety lines during shows). She's the youngest person on a team of mostly 30-year-olds, and may have considered pursuing trapeze professionally, if only she spoke French.
Circque Du Soleil, based out of Montreal, is the Big Leagues of trapeze. Cristiana believes she could cut it, but she would have to move to Canada and enroll in their school. It's a life commitment, but Cristiana chose Siena instead.
"It wasn't just one specific thing that drew me to Siena. I had visited a bunch of other colleges previously, but this was the first campus that felt like home. This is the last school I visited. When I came here I knew."
Siena life has been great, but she aches for her time flying through the air. Trapeze is her "outlet" – and Cristiana says she's "going crazy" without it. But if she can't make weekly trips back to I.FLY Trapeze, she figures why not bring the circus to Siena?
Cristiana is in the process of developing an aerial arts club on campus. The stunts are perfectly safe, and it would be a chance to share her passion with fellow Saints. Cristiana says she has a group chat with 30 students wondering when they can get started.
"To be able to do it here would be incredible. You don't have to have any background knowledge or experience to do the basics. You just need to trust yourself and trust me."
You can lose yourself hanging upside down from a bar, and when you're looking to escape the stressors of college life, there's something to be said for a short rollercoaster ride "except the drop never stops."
"It's my outlet and there are people I know who don't have an outlet. Or, maybe they do, but they would enjoy this more. Nobody ever thinks they want to do something in the circus until they're given a chance."
Interested in getting involved? Email Cristiana at cd29hoen@siena.edu.