Today we’d like to introduce you to Dr. Corey Cheval. Them and their team share their story with us below:
Founder & Director of the Gainesville Circus Center, Dr. Corey Cheval has studied classical dance and music from an early age and later took a specialized interest in the dance and music of Brazil. It was during her research on the dances of the African diaspora in Bahia, Brazil that she first began her study of aerial arts (2005). Cheval holds a Ph.D. in Cultural Anthropology from the University of Florida (2015) and an M.A. in Performance Studies from the Federal University of Bahia (2008).
With a research focus on performance and identity, Cheval taught courses at the college level in both technical and theoretical aspects of performing arts. Cheval has published her research on performance studies in peer-reviewed academic journals, and has been a guest speaker at TEDxUF, Frank Conference, Harn Museum of Art & Appleton Museum of Art, among others.
Cheval has travelled and performed across the United States and Brazil as an acrobat, singer and dancer since the early 2000s. Cheval produces Dusty’s Ragtime Circus, an award-winning live music circus show. As director of the Gainesville Circus Center, she shares her passion for performing arts with the next generation of young artists. Cheval has also written several successful grants for the production of shows and general program support at the Gainesville Circus Center. Cheval has also provided Visa document services, tour planning, PR, and travel logistics for international artists working in the U.S. She has worked with artists such as Ulisses Rocha (Brazil), Hermogenes Araujo (Brazil), and Dong Xin (China).
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
The biggest challenge in my field has been to be taken seriously. People outside of the performing arts field don’t see artists as serious professionals if they aren’t working at the level of a popstar. Circus arts and dance are fringe disciplines even within the field of performing arts, so it has taken an immense amount of personal discipline to train others to see me as the hard-working professional that I am.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I am an artist, producer, teacher, director, and grant-writer. As an artist, I work in the fields of dance, aerial acrobatics, Brazilian dance, and equestrian arts. At this point in my career, I am most passionate about equestrian arts. All of my work in other movement disciplines has led me back to my first love, horses. Equestrian arts is literally dancing with horses. I have studied classical dressage, trick horse training, trick riding, and equestrian vaulting. I have performed as vaulter and trick rider. Working with horses is a practice of energetic communication, perception, and patience. When a bond of mutual respect is built, horses become our personal avatars, making us bigger, stronger, faster, and more beautiful than we could ever be alone.
As a producer and director, I create shows centered around circus arts, often with live music and dance. I produce student shows through my school (Gainesville Circus Center) as well as professional shows. Dusty’s Ragtime Circus is a project I developed alongside my brother (Dustin Cottrell), a virtuoso musician and star of the show. The show combines pop music interpreted in ragtime and accompanied by acrobats, clowns, and dancers.
As a teacher, I have written the curriculum for the Gainesville Circus Center’s aerial program. This has been a work in progress for the last 15 years and is now recognized by the National Academy of Sports Medicine and the American Fitness and Athletics Association.
As a grant writer, I have written many grants for support of the Gainesville Circus Center and its programs, from youth development to event production.
Do you have recommendations for books, apps, blogs, etc.?
My guides, mentors, and personal entertainment (inspiration) are as follows:
Rachel Strickland – The Audacity Project, artist mentorship
Buck Brannaman – horse trainer, see film: Buck
My Favorite Murder – podcast
Music:
Florence + The Machine, Audioslave, RHCP, Lady Gaga, Aerosmith, Jau, Alcione, Marisa Monte
Shows / Movies:
GOT; LOR; Spirit Stallion of Cimarron
The Daily Show / The Colbert Report
Margaret Cho, Eddie Izzard, Ali Wong, Trevor Noah- comedians
I read hundreds of books on social theory and art in grad school. They have all informed my intellectual development. Some favorties: Venus on Wheels by Geyla Frank; Laughter Out of Place by Donna Godlstein; In the Realm of the Diamond Queen by Anna Tsing; Samba by Alma Guillermoprieto; Carnal Knowledge and Imperial Power by Laura Stoler; Anthropology and the Racial Politics of Culture by Lee D. Baker; Anthropology of Performance by Victor Turner.
Pricing:
- $25 Drop-in Circus Class
- $80 Private Lesson
- $40 Drop-in Flying Trapeze Class
Contact Info:
- Website: www.coreycheval.com
- Instagram: @coreycheval
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sconnectionllc
- Twitter: @gatorcircus
Image Credits
Stephanie Davis
Victor Souza
Indigo Sky Imagery
