The Barn is opening this year in Minturn and will be unlike any other movement studio in the Valley. With ceilings over 26 feet high and cushioned flooring, this studio will host aerial arts plus much more. Participants will suspend themselves from apparatuses while twirling from the ceiling in a beautiful aerial dance, but beyond this circus-like performance, they are connecting through conscious movement and building a supportive community.
Photo by Kira Johnson.
Tracy Long, owner and founder of The Barn, describes the journey to creating it as fulfilling a niche in the Valley. “The Barn is engineered to be the ideal space for learning aerial arts for normal humans who are interested in a fun, creative and empowering activity,” she says
Historically, aerial and circus arts were kept secret among the great traveling circus troupes, Long explains. However, with the growth in circus and flow arts as a non-traditional exercise activity comes unique community groups who need a place to practice. The Barn will offer multiple forms of conscious movement classes, including aerial (lyra, sling, silks), yoga, AcroYoga and a weekly circus skills open gym. “Some of the flow arts fit nicely into this broad category,” Long adds. “Juggling, stilt walking and hooping are where we will start.
The Barn came into being because Long had a little treasure of a studio in Minturn from 2017 to 2020, she says. Peace, Love, Aerial, Yoga, or P.L.A.Y., was an aerial yoga and fitness studio in the Minturn Business Park. It attracted people who were interested in aerial acrobatics. The studio closed because of the pandemic, and then classes moved to the Mountain Recreation field house in Edwards.
“Since re-homing at Mountain Rec, we became convinced that this, a space with higher ceilings, was the right direction for the new studio,” Long explains. The minimum attachment height for a well-rounded aerial acrobatics program is 25 feet. “Turns out it is near impossible to find a space with that challenging requirement to rent in the Valley. So, we dove in and decided to build what we needed,” she shares. “A bit of a Field of Dreams scenario — build it and they will come.”
Now located in south Minturn at 1041 Main St. next to The Trading Post, The Barn is a noticeable addition to the small town. Long describes the building process as challenging, but she knows it will be worth it.
In the meantime, aerial classes and open gym nights are hosted at Mountain Recreation. Long describes the growing community of teachers and students as incredibly supportive, encouraging and welcoming.