Craig Lewis

Owner

Craig Lewis’s fascination with circus arts began when he taught himself to juggle at age ten. He later pursued training in aerial arts and juggling through Aerial Space in Asheville, North Carolina, and the Aerial Dance program at East Tennessee State University.

In 2013, Craig founded Night Owl Circus Arts in Johnson City, Tennessee, where he has taught aerial silks, juggling, acro, and aerial rigging. In 2020, he began offering a monthly Aerial Rigging Fundamentals class online, which has since grown into one a popular educational program internationally, both online and in-person.

Craig has long been active in the broader circus and juggling communities. He previously served as Festival Site Director for the International Jugglers’ Association and currently serves on the Board of Directors of American Circus Educators, where he is a member of both the Safety Committee and the Insurance Committee.

In 2021, Craig toured with *A Magical Cirque Christmas* as the production’s Aerial Rigger and Butterfly Lift Operator. From 2024 to 2025, he served as the full-time Head Rigger at San Francisco Circus Center. He also works with IATSE Local 699.

Craig holds a degree in Digital Media with a minor in Computer Science from East Tennessee State University. Outside the circus, he enjoys international cooking, rock climbing, caving, and making hot sauce.

Vianna Isbister

Artistic and Executive Director

Vianna began training in aerial arts in the summer of 2017 after participating in ETSU’s theatrical production of Charlotte’s Web. She has trained in aerial silks, lyra, and aerial yoga, along with a smattering of other apparatuses and circus/dance-related techniques. Vianna graduated in 2020 with a Bachelor of Arts in Theatre and minors in Dance and Storytelling from ETSU. Her focus in her dance training has been on dance improvisation, choreography, and aerial dance. She is back at ETSU working on a Master of Arts in Communication and Storytelling Studies. Vianna is passionate about blending multiple performance mediums and uncovering the story that is lurking underneath every piece of art. She is fascinated with blending improvisation into every aspect of life. Vianna enjoys looking at life as though every new opportunity thrown her way is a new opportunity to find a story and create some art. Some other interests include reading everything she can get her hands on (including academic journals), watching excess amounts of Youtube, and tabletop roleplaying games.

Leo Daniels

Studio Manager

Leo (they/them) worked at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival 8 years ago and accidentally fell head over heels in love with circus. Bernie Dieter's Little Death Club was a whirl of lights, music, cabaret, gin, sword swallowing, and the most mesmerizing trapeze act in the world. When they left that tent, awash in after-show glow and high on magic, they knew they had found their passion. When they arrived back home, one of their friends caught wind that they wanted to learn aerial arts and scooped them up, taught them some basic lyra skills, and sent them on their way to the nearest aerial studio. Leo has never looked back. They have trained in lyra for 8+ years with joyous forays into clowning, acro, sling, spanish web, rope, trapeze, and flexibility. They have taught regionally for 6 years, and trained up and down the east coast and abroad for 8 years. They have worked at circus and theater festivals in the United States, Scotland, and Switzerland. Want to know how to build a circus tent? This is the clown to ask! Leo currently teaches at Body Shop, Night Owl Circus Arts, and Empyrean Arts. They earned their second bachelors in theater at ETSU, focusing on production and design. Leo also trains and collaborates with Mountain Movers, a local dance and aerial performance collective. Leo is desperately in love with their three cats - Sirius, Bean, and Roxie.

Gracie Caroline

Gracie is delighted and grateful to share her love for circus arts with her students and peers at Night Owl Circus Arts. She believes movement is medicine and the synergy in a community of artists and movers is unmatched. Gracie’s curiosity to hang upside down began when she explored aerial classes at ETSU where she obtained her Bachelor of Arts in Theatre and Dance. Dance has always provided an outlet for her to search for and share what feels vulnerable and meaningful. Although dancing on the ground was her first love, she prefers to be in the air and has ample gratitude for the strength she has found within her body and her mind throughout her circus journey. Keeping safety and encouragement at the forefront, Gracie teaches a variety of classes at NOCA and would love to work with you!

Rachel Broad

Rachel first became interested in Aerial when she had the chance to see a friend's recital in college. She was immediately fascinated by the unique blend of dance and acrobatics in the air and thought it looked like a blast. After moving to the Tri Cities she tried a silks class in 2017 and has been hooked ever since.

Rachel has a masters degree in Linguistics, and minors in Computer Science and Japanese from UNC Chapel Hill. She currently works as a Software Developer and specializes in web development.

Laurel Guy

Laurel is thrilled to be a part of the coaching staff of NOCA after training as a student with NOCA since 2021. She believes that absolutely anyone can learn to fly and that to do so is incredibly freeing, healing, empowering, and joyful. Laurel completed her aerial silks teacher training through PaperDoll Militia and has trained as an aerial student at NOCA and during visits to aerial studios in Lexington and New York City. She identifies as a storyteller and a story-gatherer and has spent much of her life doing just that through musical theatre, speech and debate, teaching, and aerial arts. One of her greatest joys as an aerialist is meeting people, hearing their stories, and empowering them to tell their stories through music, their bodies, and aerial apparatus.
She holds a Master of Divinity from Emmanuel Christian Seminary and is currently working on a Master of Arts in Clinical Mental Health Counseling at the University of the Cumberlands.

Mindy Woodall

Mindy began her aerial journey in 2014. She took an aerial silks class after seeing a flyer on the ETSU campus. As a theatre student, she had the opportunity to take 2 semesters of aerial dance at ETSU and fell in love with aerial arts. She graduated with a BA in theatre and a BS in chemistry in 2017. She rejoined the NOCA family in 2019 after an extended break to focus on her daughter that was born in 2016. She loves the relationships she’s created through the studio and the escape it provides from her day job. She is employed at Nuclear Fuel Services where she is also a part of their emergency response team.

Jenavieve Dance

Jenavieve Dance is a professional aerialist, circus artist, coach, and former contortionist. She is accomplished in aerial hoop, straps, lyra, silks, trapeze and enjoys playing on the rope and Spanish web. After running away with the circus at 16 to debut a duo Lyra act, she managed to turn a humble hobby into a full-blown career. From pounding stakes to performing for hundreds Jenavieve has now spent almost a decade honing her craft and sharing her passion for circus arts with others.

Jenna Eason

Jenna is a North Carolina native, with an extensive history of competing and performing in cheerleading, gymnastics, dance and theatre. After moving to New England in 2009, she was diagnosed with fibromyalgia and found it extremely difficult to participate in any physical activity. That was, until she found Yoga. Her body and mind began to heal, almost instantly. Initially, she focused on Ashtanga, and gradually began adding Flow, Yin, and Restorative classes to her routine. She also began training in AcroYoga, at Maya Movement Arts in Greenville, SC, which has become her passion. Wanting to take her yoga practice to the next level, she completed her RYT-200 yoga teacher training at Downtown Yoga Center in Johnson City. When Jenna moved to the Tri-Cities in 2016, she knew she had to find an outlet for Acro. Through work and personal travel, she was able catch workshops, classes and jams around the country. And in 2017, she began co-offering workshops locally, through NOCA and DYC. She is thrilled to be a part of the founding Tri-Cities AcroYoga community and looks forward to seeing you at our weekly NOCA classes!

Stephanie Roberts

Stephanie Roberts first tried AcroYoga in the fall of 2014 after being persuaded to stay late one evening after a yoga class. It didn’t take long before she became hooked, and co-founded an AcroYoga student organization at the University of Arkansas. She received her RYT-200 yoga teacher training the summer of 2016, and has been passionate about sharing the wonderful world of yoga and AcroYoga ever since. She moved to Tennessee from Arkansas spring in the spring of 2017, and now teaches at Great Body Company, the YMCA of Kingsport, the Kingsport Ballet, and Night Owl Circus Arts. Bringing Acro to the Tri-Cities has been one of her main goals since moving here, and she is honored to be a part of the AcroYoga movement in East Tennessee! She absolutely loves being able to teach the two things she is most passionate about, and she loves sharing the experience of flying with others! Acro allows you to build a new kind of trust with people, and enables you to let go of the negative stigma that our society assigns to touch and personal space. Acro provides a safe environment for you to grow as a person, as well as grow within a community.