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i-star Academy M A G A Z I N E H E L L O I S S U E 2

P3-4) Interview with Charlotte Earl

P5) Colouring Page

P6) Guess who??

P7) Dance Q&A

P8) Coaches Throwbacks

P9) i-star Crossword

P10-11) Interview with Sky Flow Artist

P12) Family Fitness

P13) Dance Wordsearch

P14) RG Q&A

P15) Design your own leotard

P16) Medal Cookies Interview with Charlotte Earl

Introduce us to yourself ... Hello, I'm Charlotte Earl. I am a professional circus artist living in London.

How long did you train at i- star Academy? I trained at i-star Academy for about 15 years from the age of 4 up until 19 before I moved to London to join the National Centre for Circus Arts.

What was your biggest achievement whilst training as a gymnast/dancer at i-star Academy? What has been your most I think my biggest memorable job as a trapeze achievements as a dancer and artist? gymnast at I-Star Academy My most memorable job as an were 1) coming 2nd as a team aerialist would be opening the at the Dance World 2019 Brit Awards live at the O2 Championships in New York arena alongside Huge Jackman 2015 and 2) medaling at the while I was still a student at the British Championships as a National Centre for Circus Arts. group gymnast and the English Champions when I was younger as an individual gymnast.

Where did you train to P14) RG Q&A become a trapeze artist? I trained at the National Centre for Circus Arts on their BA degree course before becoming a professional circus artist. How long did you train for and what made you choose this discipline? I was training there for three years before graduating in 2019. I had never done any circus before being accepted into the school other than 1 workshop I did with I-Star Academy in the February before I started the course. I knew when I started that I wanted to be an aerialist however I had no idea how many different disciplines there were. The first few months consisted of trying different things and when I tried single point trapeze I knew it was for me. I felt I could transfer my previous training in dance and gymnastics and develop my skills into this new art form I hadn’t trained before. I was so excited to push myself in something completely new to me and my body.

What has been your biggest achievement so far as a trapeze artist? My biggest achievement as an artist would be getting approached by Cirque du Soleil to work for them once I graduated as an aerialist in their shows. I performed on board MSC Meraviglia with a solo trapeze act in their show Viaggio - Cirque du Soleil at sea. I feel very lucky with the jobs and achievements I’ve had since graduating. I’ve only been a professional artist for a year and a half and am so proud of the opportunities I’ve had since then.

What is your next goal? What do you see yourself doing next? I would love to be an artist in one of Cirque du Soleil’s touring or arena shows. I have always loved the single point trapeze act in their show ‘Luzia’ and would love to perform it one day. Especially when the show comes to the Royal Albert Hall because it is a beautiful venue that has given me so much inspiration when seeing Cirque shows there before.

Guess Who? Which of our coaches in pictured below as a toddler?

A) LUCIE

B) MICHAELA T! ER AL KE O a's ? J an ve an mo a b cs is sti at na Wh ym e g rit ! ou IT

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E I C U L ) A - R E W S N A C) HEATHER DANCE Q&A

What is your favourite dance What has been your most style and why? favourite dance memory whilst My favourite style of dance is at i-star? Contemporary. I absolutely love I have so many amazing memories contemporary dance because of of my dance at i-star, it's really hard how experimental and expressive to choose one! I've loved every it can be. You can play around to routine I've performed by myself, as find interesting ways to move the a duet with Emily, as a trio with body and create new shapes. Plus Bella and Cherry and as a group it has this amazing power to bring and all the places I have visited. If I a story to life. had to pick one it would be my part Lara, Age 13 - Senior All Stars in The Greatest Showman, which was choreographed by the lovely Ashleigh. I enjoyed playing my Who inspires you to dance? character and entertaining the When I'm dancing Lucie is the one audience, making them smile and that inspires me. Lucie has an being able to perform with the energetic vibe which makes me older dancers. I can't wait to make feel very positive. lots more wonderful memories! Emilie, Age 10 - Storm Dance Tilly, Age 11 - Storm Dance Project Project

What would you like to achieve next whilst dancing at i-star? When COVID is over I'm really excited to get back to working on new routines that we can take to competitions. I also can't wait to get back to technique training that we were focusing on when we were allowed in the studio. Aimee, Age 16 - Storm Dance Project Can you spot our coaches in these throwbacks!

I N T E R V I E W W I T H S K Y F L O W A R T I S T

How long have you been performing as a hula hooper? I've been performing professionally for 7 years now.

What inspired you to go down this path? Growing up, I was always fascinated by the circus; how the artists would perform seemingly impossible tricks and evoke all sorts of emotions in the audience. I fell in love with circus arts, and as my favourite apparatus as a rhythmic gymnast was the hoop, I was especially drawn to hula hooping. I remember watching Elena Lev's hula hoop act in Cirque du Soleil's 'Alegria' and being inspired to start training circus hooping tricks straight away. I haven't stopped since!

What has been your biggest achievement as a hula hooper/circus artist? I was nominated for and won the award 'European Hula Hooper of the Year' which was a big surprise for me! Where did you learn your skills? As a rhythmic gymnast I trained at i-star Academy and was in the GBR national team. Having a strong background in rhythmic gymnastics is really beneficial going into circus arts as you already have a good foundation of strength, flexibility, body control and expression. The rest of the hooping techniques I either taught myself or learnt at hula hoop conventions. Having handled the hoop now for 22 years I feel like I have enough vocabulary to start focusing more on creating and inventing my own tricks and techniques, which is what excites me the most right now.

What has been your most memorable performance as a hula hooper/circus artist? Difficult questions! I've travelled to over 50 countries as a circus artist, performing in all sorts of venues and shows. I honestly couldn't pick one performance as the most memorable, as different shows have been special and memorable to me for so many different reasons.

What is your next goal/what do you want to achieve next? I'm currently working hard on creating a new solo act ready for when theatres reopen. I'm also working with an incredibly talented and special group of people on a brand new show for 2022 which I'll be able to share more about at the end of this year! You can follow me on Instagram @skyflowartist to stay updated with my projects, shows, workshops, etc! FAMILY FITNESS GAME

Take it in turns to choose a word for your family member. they must then use the code below to spell out the word and complete the tasks next to the letter!

A - 40 Jumping Jacks N - 20 Second Plank B - 20 Crunches O - 30 Second Wall Sit C - 30 Squats P - 20 Leg Raises D - 10 Pushups Q - 15 Tricep Dips E - 20 Mountain Climbers R - 40 Second Jog on Spot F - 10 Burpees S - 50 Second Skipping G - 10 Arm Circles T - 15 Straight Jumps H - 20 Squat Jumps U - 15 Sit Ups I - 30 Star Jumps V - 15 Back Arches J - 30 High Knees W - 20 Second Hold Dish K -15 Tuck Jumps X - 20 Second Hold Arch L - 25 Lunges Y - 20 Jumping Jacks M - 30 Ankle Raises Z - 15 Star Jumps

RRGG QQ&&AA

What is your favourite thing to do What do you love about i-star during your training sessions? Academy? My favourite thing to do is ball. I like I love seeing my friends and I love it when we do a routine together how supportive everyone is and I with ball online because it's fun. I get love the variety of people we get to bounce it and throw it and I can to meet in workshops and at do tricks with it! competitions. I love competing Ivie, Age 7 - Recreational Squad with my group in dance and gym and visiting different places. I love Who is your favourite international that it feels like a small club but Rhythmic Gymnast and why? actually lots of people go there! I One of my favourite gymnasts is love all the experiences I've had Katsiaryna Halkina from Belarus. Her with my friends! routines are beautiful with so many Bella, Age 11 - amazing skill. The music she uses is Espoir Performance Squad always a little different and interesting. Her expression is beautiful.

What has been your most Cherry, Age 11 - favourite competition and Espoir Performance Squad why? Edinburgh Group League. I loved What is your favourite piece of that I got to go on a plane with apparatus and why? my friends and us all staying in a My favourite apparatus is rope. I hotel together. The competition haven't done much rope before but I was good fun and I caught all my like learning new tricks. I have 3 ropes risks!!! at home to practice with. Brooke, Age 11 - Espoir Squad Hilda, Age 8 - Start Squad D R A T O E L

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N G I S E D Medal Cookies Ingredients 140g butter 100g light soft brown sugar 3 tbsp golden syrup 1/2 tsp vanilla extract 350g plain flour (extra for dusting) 1tsp bicarbonate of soda 1 large egg To Decorate 1kg pack ready-to-roll icing icing sugar food colouring, edible glitter (optional) 15 long colourful ribbons

Method STEP 1 - Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Line 2 baking trays with baking parchment. Melt the butter, sugar and syrup in a small saucepan. Mix in the vanilla, remove from the heat and leave to cool for 10 mins.

STEP 2 - Sieve the flour and bicarbonate of soda into a bowl. Pour in the melted butter mixture and the egg, and stir together to form a stiff-ish dough. Pop the dough in the fridge for 10 mins to chill and firm up.

STEP 3 - Roll the dough out on a floured surface to 5mm thick, then stamp out 15 circles using a 7.5cm round cookie cutter; you may need to re-roll the trimmings to get 15 cookies. Make a hole at the top of each circle with the end of a pencil.

STEP 4 - Place on the baking trays and bake for 12 mins until golden, swapping the trays around halfway through. Cool on a wire rack. Decorate the cookies (see above), making sure the hole is at the top of each one. Will keep for 3 days in an airtight container. Thank you for reading! See you in the next issue!

@istaracademy www.i-staracademy.co.uk/