Aerial Arts Studio Set to Open in Downtown Hilo

A new aerial arts studio is opening doors in downtown Hilo starting March 1.

Located in a 1,700-square-foot warehouse tucked beside Kalakaua Park, the new space, dubbed The Airhouse, is owned and operated by Aerial Arts Hawai’i, an aerial circus production company and talent collective. The studio will offer beginner- and intermediate-level classes for aerial silks, aerial hammock, aerial yoga and aerial hoop, as well as ground classes like burlesque, Bellydance, core conditioning, and flexibility.

The venture is spearheaded by Bella O’Toole and Zoë Eisenberg, an East-Hawai’i producing team who have been running aerial stage shows out of the Hilo Palace Theater since 2017.

“It’s a weird time to be opening a physical space for a physical medium,” said Eisenberg, who works as a writer and film producer when not moonlighting in circus arts, “but I also think the community is looking for a bit of positive change right now and we’re excited to offer that.”

Safety is top priority.

“In response to COVID-19, we’re not doing any drop-in classes, but instead focusing on six-week series, where a limited number of students — no more than eight — sign up for an entire six-week set of classes at one time,” said O’Toole, who has been teaching aerial arts since 2016. “This means we can easily make sure their apparatuses are kept separate, and it also allows us to better track who is coming in and out of the space.”

The studio will require everyone who enters to undergo temperature checks, sanitize hands and wear masks at all times while inside the facility. All mats and any shared surfaces will be wiped down between classes to keep everyone as safe as possible.

Classes will cost roughly $13 each and are currently open for sign-ups. For more information, click here.