We had the good fortune of connecting with Kelly Thayer and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Kelly, how does your business help the community?

My business, AcroAnt, is a company that provides partner acrobatic (Acro) trainings, performances, event faciliating, and consulting. Acro is a partner and community-driven sport that involves two or more people performing acrobatics together. Beginning at the local level, it expands globally, welcoming individuals of all ages, sizes, languages, and fitness abilities. Participants gather for classes, jams, skill shares, and as spectators, uniting various modalities from the circus, yoga, cheer, flow, and acrobatic worlds.

AcroAnt draws inspiration from the remarkable abilities of ants, which work collectively to achieve common goals. Active participation and complete presence are essential. In a world dominated by screens, this practice reconnects us with in-person interactions, touch, introspection, vulnerability, and encourages us to explore new possibilities. Similar to ants lifting objects many times their body weight and forming bridges to cross rivers, our practice showcases the power of collaboration.

The skills acquired through Acro have numerous applications in everyday life, making this type of training and awareness invaluable to individuals worldwide.

Volunteering my time and efforts towards the Southern California Acro community has been important to me over the course of my practice by offering safety events, meet ups, and conversations. I was also honored to be invited by Chris Thomson to Tandem Surf at fundraisers to raise money and show support for surf therapy.

What should our readers know about your business?

AcroAnt provides trauma informed Acro workshops, an all women’s Acro workshop series “Lady Basing LA”, performances of Acro, Fire Acro, and Fire Flow, Event Facilitation, and Acro Consultation.

AcroAnt workshops offer a unique approach, incorporating trauma-informed teaching, non-violent communication, and the discovery and refinement of natural talents through technique and training. I focus on enhancing ease, conserving energy, fostering enjoyment, ensuring longevity through safety measures, facilitating effective communication, self-advocacy, and aligning with our nervous system to reach new levels of potential. Additionally, I emphasize the importance of support, creativity, and embracing ‘fails’ as learning opportunities to find our range; as well as guiding students through exercises to activate the dormant parts within themselves as a resource on their fitness journey.

My training in gymnastics, dance, fine arts, and the militant years working in production of the Hollywood film industry enables me to offer an organized and creative approach to events, consulting, workshops, and performances.

Performances are specialized with self choreographed sets combining Acro with elements of fire, flow tools, and storytelling customized to the client’s needs. Artist collaborations are encouraged.

I’m excited to be working on a fitness safety program and implanting it at the next Los Angeles Acro festival.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I would suggest to a visiting friend to sample LA. Spend a day in Topanga Canyon stopping at the Canyon Bistro and ordering truffle fries, going on a hike, and ending the night at a locals live music show. Explore LA’s public transportation to downtown, visit a museum, experience the vibrancy of the fashion district during market hours, grab dinner at a speakeasy, and catch a show. On a Sunday, bike to OMB (Original Muscle Beach), swim, watch or participate in the outdoor activities, perhaps try Acro or slackline, and catch an iconic sunset from the ferris wheel. Get your classic LA fix on the eastside with a vintage store, coffee shop, and time to check out the music scene. Have a blend of a tourist and local experience.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?

When reflecting on those who have influenced my journey the first individuals who come to mind are my parents. They provided a significant foundation for me to break free from ancestral trauma cycles. Both of them emerged from tragic backgrounds, yet their decision to live differently imparted to me a mindset to challenge the prescribed path, foster curiosity, and purse change. My mother, a nurturing and brilliant woman, excels in bringing people together. She served as my protector and instilled in me the qualities of a fierce maternal figure. Meanwhile, my father, a creative and builder, is one of twelve siblings. Despite his challenging upbringing, he courageously ventured into entrepreneurship. They planted seeds I get to nurture and pay forward.

Our family was devastated by the news of my mother’s car accident when I was fifteen and my sister was twelve. The accident left her in a coma and inflicted a traumatic brain injury. This experience provided me with a profound insight into the workings of the brain and body. I became deeply invested in understanding how trauma manifests physically and emotionally, its far-reaching effects, and potential avenues for healing.

Assuming the role of caregiver for myself, my younger sister, my mother, and a friend who moved in with us after losing her father unexpectedly to illness, I sought out role models. I began to appreciate the resilience and adaptability of the other powerful women in my life – my aunts, grandmothers, and my friends’ mothers. These women effortlessly juggled multiple responsibilities and acquired new skills as needed to support their families, friends, or colleagues. They were superheroes! I learned the value of sisterhood through these experiences.

My focus on empowering women continued as I embarked on an internship in the film industry in California. Alongside two other women, we formed a collective aimed at challenging gender stereotypes and safeguarding ourselves and fellow women in a male-dominated and power imbalanced field.

I found Acro as an adult and had the privilege of learning from powerhouse teachers – Sarah Yovovich, Sarah Vosen, Casey Stroud, Sonia Peltzer, and Chris Filkins. They played various roles – basing, flying, and spotting – making the sport both safe and boundless. Chris later became a co-teacher, training partner, and friend, with whom I had discussions on fitness consent and community well-being and explored the mechanics of Acro skills and the continuation of refining them and additionally my partnership with Bryan Belleza in Acro was supportive and creative; Diane Kemker showed me how to uphold the integrity of a community; and Soop took on drafting the Acro Safety Guidelines and Codes of Conduct with me.

It was imperative for me to continue fostering community and sisterhood, establishing safety structures, empowering women, and advocating for trauma education. The art outlet I had through my high school art teacher was invaluable and the women at my local Domestic Violence Center play a crucial role in providing support and resources.

AcroAnt events Lady Basing LA, The Ladies Meet Up, and The Safety Event Safe AF grew out of these experiences. I also had the honor of participating in surf therapy events through my Tandem Surfing partner Chris Thomson who does incredible work with Walk on Water, Best Day Foundation, TheraSurf, and Pure Stoke. Movement is a powerful tool.

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/acroant/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/938216896271791/

Image Credits
BAC / Daniela Dušková, Marc Evans Photography, Niko Douwes Photography

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