Jen MacQueen, coach and owner of Akrosphere Aerial & Circus Arts has found a home at 225 Curie Drive and is excited to offer a larger space for her 250 students. Previously, Jen and her team were two miles down the road at Performer’s Warehouse, but their business was outgrowing the space, and the Performer’s Warehouse was moving, too. Jen found the perfect space, 5,200 SF of it, at 225 Curie Drive in Alpharetta.
“I was searching online for warehouse space in the area and EpiCity popped up,” says Jen. “I really liked the amount of information I found and the way it was written. I took two of our coaches with me and we met up with Allen and Tom of EpiCity, and they have been so easy to talk to and work with from day one that there was no need to look anywhere else.”
They first toured the space in late May and were hoping to move in December, but quickly learned they needed to move sooner and EpiCity was able to get the space ready for move-in two months earlier.
According to Jen, they had a lot of unique and quite specific needs. “We needed EpiCity’s team to move the overhead lighting over and up out of the way of the steel truss beams because we needed to use our rigging system to hang from the beams for some of our activities,” said Jen. “We also wanted a soaring sky-blue ceiling color, some walls knocked down for a more open space, and were in need of additional fixtures in the bathrooms to accommodate our students. The team was able to create what I had imagined and more, and it looks fantastic.”
Another request fulfilled was to create a viewing window from the lobby to the class and performance area so that the parents could watch their kids practice and perform. They also wanted to keep the concrete block wall, as it added to the ambience of the space and provides more flexibility for equipment use down the road. Function was the most important thing to Akrosphere, and this previous warehouse and office space was mainly in need of reworking for flow and function to make the day-today function better for what was needed for their business.
At Akrosphere, they specialize in all things circus, including Aerial Silks, Cyr Wheel, Aerial Hoop, Trapeze, Spanish Web, and Cloud Swing for ages 2 to adult. Jen’s specialty is the Cyr Wheel, and enjoys all of the aerial and circus arts. Jen began her career as a gymnast, training for the Olympics until both of her knees were injured. She worked her way back to health and became a professional dancer and choreographer, running a dance company in New York City. And again, she found herself with injuries that made her change course, becoming an actor in performing theatre. “That’s the way it is with many performers,” says Jen. It was after that she found the circus, and as Jen points out, the European circus model — “think Cirque du Soleil.”
Jen and her three coaches offer classes to all ages, which is the bulk of her business, and also have an Events Performance Company, AKME Instant Circus Performance, which performs locally and nationally. The 25 professional youth performers, age 8 – 19 years old, practice at Akrosphere and also give performances there. “I’m so excited to have a special performance for our friends at EpiCity around the holidays, where they can bring their families and enjoy the circus,” said Jen.
One performer is looking at circus as a career, and Jen used to be his dance instructor. One trained with Cirque du Soleil. Others will go to Montreal and train this summer. “It’s so fulfilling to see these youth choose to pursue their dreams and we’re excited to help them realize their goals, while also remembering they are kids, and helping them to find that balance,” said Jen.
The response to the new space has been great, according to Jen. “The parents, kids and coaches all love it,” says Jen. “It was a right space, right time, with the right people situation. We could not have asked for anything better.”