AMEBA

Acrobatic and Aerial Dance

Collaborating Artists

The heart of the partnership between Andrew Adams and Erika Gilfether lies in the continuing quest to infuse the traditional circus apparatus of aerial straps with a contemporary dance sensuality. When they met, Andrew brought with him the experience of seven summers under the big top with the Vermont youth circus Circus Smirkus and the guidance of Russian and Mongolian coaches from the Moscow Circus. Erika graduated with a BFA in dance from Tisch School of the Arts at N.Y.U. and toured Mexico and Uruguay with the modern dance company Jan Erkert and Dancers. Their work together began with the Midnight Circus in Chicago and led them to performances in Italy, Germany and New York. They have trained together in London at The Circus Space and in Montreal with Debra Brown and Sam Alvarez. They took to the high seas with The Caravan Stage Barge, touring the Gulf of Mexico while performing on aerial silks. Currently, they are performing with The Lyric Opera of Chicago in Wagner's Ring Cycle, Erika as a bungee Rheinmaiden and Andrew as a trampolining Valkyrie. Audiences in venues as diverse as corporate conventions (McCormick Place, Chicago), rock concerts (Umphreys Mcgee, New Years Eve 2004), and small vaudeville venues (The Bindlestiff Family Cirkus, The Lavendar Cabaret) have all responded to the intimacy and connection that is expressed in their work together. They can be contacted at egilfether@hotmail.com.

Photo credit: Tim Longacre