Who Are We?

Night Flight is a performance company based in Portland, OR. We produce big, colorful, beautiful shows that combine breathtaking aerial artistry and playful storytelling. We are extremely passionate about what we do and we believe whole heartedly that love is in the details. Aside from our shows, we are also an Aerial and Circus Arts Studio and teach Series and Drop-in classes. Our Series include classes in trapeze, silks, lyra, rope, straps, handstands, stretching and contortion. As teachers, we are dedicated to creating fun, safe and challenging classes that focus on individualized attention. We are invested in our students and helping them reach their goals.

 

Meet Our Coaches

Daniela Steiner

Coach | Trapeze, Handstands

After teaching and performing with Do Jump! for 12 years, Daniela moved to the Bay Area, where she worked as a circus coach at the San Francisco Circus Center. While in San Francisco, Daniela co-founded Sweet Can Circus and performed in Teatro ZinZanni’s Cabaret Lunatique. Now back in Portland, Daniela performs with Night Flight, Circus Artemis, Curious Comedy, Pelu Teatre, and Nomadic Theatre Company. Other Northwest aerial instructing credits include the School of Acrobatics and New Circus Arts in Seattle and the Circus Project.

Jack Stocklynn

Coach | Trapeze

Jack holds a BFA in Theater and Original Works from Cornish College, where he also studied clowning. Clowning lead to the whole gamut of Circus Arts! As a performer Jack has toured nationally with DoJump!, and all along the West Coast with his own blend of Clowning and Aerial dance, including the National Queer Arts fest in San Francisco. As a director Jack has been making original work with youth and adults for 10+ years. In 2014, Jack created his very own circus, Sir Cupcake’s Queer Circus, a professional circus which celebrates transgender and queer circus artists. As a teacher Jack is a master at breaking down skills so they are easy to learn, and so that anyone can learn a little circus! Jack believes firmly in the power of play, focus and hard work to make innovative circus theatre that can lift up an entire community.

Jordie Campbell

Coach | Silks

Jordie Campbell is an interdisciplinary circus performer, coach, and curious explorer of all things movement. She performs and creates original work both on and off the ground specializing in aerial silks, rope, strap loops, and a signature blend of ground movement influenced by years of dance, acrobatics, hand balancing, and contortion training. With over ten years of performance experience she has trained and performed with an array of apparatus on a variety of stages from cabaret shows to full length productions. Jordie is passionate about collaboration between people and also between styles and interests. From movies to music and art she draws inspiration from many sources to create movement uniquely her own and strives to encourage the same in others.

Kate Cartmill

Coach | Trapeze

Kate started practicing aerial circus arts in 2014, what she fondly calls her adult onset circus. She's been an incredibly curious body nerd and movement enthusiast for as long as she can remember. Kate loves breaking down complex movements into smaller parts and exploring pathways. She started coaching circus in 2023 and especially enjoys igniting the love of circus in beginners. Kate finds it an honor and a joy to help folks learn to be super-humans: being strong, brave, and able to do hard things inside the studio and out.

Larke Schuldberg

Coach | Trapeze

Larke has been performing and creating theatre since she was a child in Missoula, Montana. After receiving a BFA in Playwriting from NYU, Larke moved to Portland where she discovered aerial and Night Flight and became immediately hooked. She has been performing aerial since 2012. As a trapeze instructor, Larke loves helping her students develop kinesthetic awareness and develop a deeper connection with their body all while learning how to do something amazing. As an theatrical performer, Larke loves all parts of the theatrical process from writing, directing and coaching to performing and stage handing.

John Hernandez

Coach | Silks, Straps, Rope

John Hernandez is an accomplished aerialist based out of the Pacific Northwest. He started his aerial training in 2007. His main focus to Aerial Silks and Straps. In 2009, He completed a certification program in Fitness Technology focusing on Movement Analysis, Class Management and Exercise Physiology. His talents have been shown in Night Flight’s annual Halloween Shows: Fright Night, Portland’s Vampire Masquerade Ball, Portland’s Umbrella Festival, Sir Cupcakes Queer Circus, Prismatic, Whoopee Live, and the Spokane Symphony. In addition to performing, John has spent most of his time developing his skills as an instructor, where he focuses on students establishing a good foundation and fundamental techniques, working on step by step progressions, strength and confidence building.

Alison Lockfeld

Coach | Stretching, Contortion

Captivated by the circus at an early age, Alison began her circus training with preschool classes at Acrosports in San Francisco. Spending most of her life surrounded by inspiring people and immersed in the circus world Alison has learned a lot about acrobatics, dance, juggling, contortion, clowning and aerial arts. She has trained at a number of schools around the United States, Canada, Switzerland and France. Most notably the Mongolian Contortion Center in San Francisco and Kinetic Theory in Los Angeles. She also studied Psychology and Kinesiology and graduated Occidental College. Alison loves to share her skills with audiences and students.

Nami Hall

Coach | Trapeze, Handstands

Perpetually in search of wonder found when we are not bound to the ground, Nami Hall has been directing and performing aerial poetry, narrative theatre and inverse kitsch across the globe for more than 25 years. She holds a BA in Circus Arts with specialization in Swinging Trapeze and Hand Balancing; currently teaching her unique somatic approach and technique to those who are eager to learn. She teaches at Night Flight Studio, Portland’s Queer owned and operated aerial and circus studio.

Nami traveled the world as company member and eventual Associate Director of Australian company SWAY. She’s created work and performed for the 2014 Russian Winter Olympics, the 2012 London Summer Olympics, World Expos, Commonwealth Games, and has worked with the International Ballet Theatre, among other notable engagements. She was based in Brooklyn, NY for 7 years then L.A., Shanghai, Tokyo, Portland and most recently Berlin.

A graduate of the National Institute of Circus Arts, she realized that flights of fancy and joy in the perfectly absurd could find elegance and harmony through delicate choreography. This originality—as well as her discipline—sets her apart as a performer, and now teacher and choreographer, as she strives to creatively explore and define new boundaries around aerial work.

Emily Cosby

Coach | Lyra, Silks, Trapeze

Emily took her first aerial class at Night Flight in 2012 and has been enamored with aerial ever since. She began performing in Night Flight’s student shows before performing in Fright Night and Flying Fruitcake, as well as other local productions. In 2019 Emily began teaching at Night Flight and loves coaching students beginning or continuing their aerial journey. She enjoys training and teaching trapeze, lyra, silks, as well as training duo lyra with her aerial partner.

Christina Riccetti

Coach | Silks

Christina Riccetti has been with Night Flight since 2013. First as a student and now as a coach and performer. She is a NASM certified with many years of movement training from personal training, martial arts, paddling to aerial. She is also an artist who makes trapeze boots, costumes and props. Encouraging people to be creative and move their bodies is one of her favorite things.