Opening April 6 in the Brewery District, AcroEnso is a new multi-disciplinary movement arts studio with offerings from acrobatics to clowning to yoga. Cofounders Cyrus Luciano and Keisha Thrift have been renovating the old Anchor Auctions building for almost a year, growing a roster of nearly 30 instructors and diversifying their list of classes and workshops along the way.
Acrobatics, Cyr wheel, and dance are the three core disciplines at AcroEnso. Luciano and Thrift practice partner acrobatics, which they demonstrated when I visited AcroEnso last Saturday. “It’s basically just making fun shapes with people” quipped Luciano.
The Cyr wheel, a large metal hoop that one steps into and spins, is often seen on the stages of Cirque du Soleil. “Most people, if you ask them if they want to do [Cyr wheel], they say yes,” observed Luciano, “but then there’s the step of getting over the fear and actually stepping into a wheel and trying it.”
To help people overcome that fear, AcroEnso will also offer some more familiar disciplines, like yoga and martial arts, and a general fitness area with weights and aerobic equipment. The idea is to get people in the door to participate in what they know so that they might then try something new. Maybe you’ll meet the Gyrokinesis instructor while on the rowing machine and the next thing you know…
Movement is the thread that runs through all disciplines practiced at AcroEnso. “Instead of saying about myself ‘well I do Cyr Wheel and partner acrobatics,’ I’d say ‘I like to move, and this is one of the ways in which I like to move’” explained Luciano. One of his greatest hopes for AcroEnso is that it will foster a community of collaboration in which styles of movement will inform and influence one another, where a yoga student will take a juggling class and a weightlifter will drop in at an open dance studio.
AcroEnso is located in the old Anchor Auctions building at 601 E 4th St in Reno, and the space alone is worth a visit. The remarkable building was constructed in the 1930s to house IXL Laundry and Reno Towel and Linen Service. Then the building “cost $12,000 and featured a steel truss roof with skylights that naturally illuminated the work space,” wrote Catherine Magee and Alicia Barber on RenoHistorical.org.
While Luciano and Thrift have made considerable upgrades to the 9400 sq. ft. space, including a 6000 sq. ft. platform optimized for dance and Cyr Wheel, many original elements remain. Natural light streams through the windows and skylights, and the exposed metal trusses add an industrial feel. Who wouldn’t want to take a Cyr wheel for a spin in such a setting?
Grand Opening
The grand opening celebration is scheduled for the evening of Saturday, April 6. The event is free and open to the public. The schedule is as follows:
- 6-8 PM: Open house. Try out a Cyr Wheel, play around on the mats, and meet the teachers.
- 8 PM: Performances. Teachers will perform, demonstrating several of the disciplines offered at AcroEnso.
- After: DJ dance party to follow the performances.
Location: 601 East 4th Street.
