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Who We Are…

The heartbeat of Above Ground is to offer a space of both physical and emotional safety, and to bring honor to God. ALL walks of life are welcome here! We want our students to be free to express their authenticity and creativity while demonstrating kindness and respecting others. We are a studio dedicated to excellence, and to safe, technical learning. We strive to foster an environment that exudes warmth, encouragement, and support.

Our History…

Above Ground was founded in 2015 by Amanda Hamburger in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. What began as a hobby quickly developed into a side hustle on a rig in Amanda’s backyard. After seeing the positive feedback and the demand for group classes, Above Ground opened its doors in its first physical space in 2016 inside of a cheer gym.

It was clear that God’s blessings were upon Above Ground as it began to flourish. Students became friends and those friends turned into a family. Together, they put on almost a dozen in-studio performances, hosted many events and parties, and performed locally all over Baton Rouge and throughout the state of Louisiana.

In 2021, Above Ground closed its doors in Baton Rouge as Amanda and her husband Chris moved to California for short term employment opportunities. They then moved to Georgia at the end of 2022. In January of 2023, God opened the door for Above Ground to be reborn, reimagined, and reinvented.

Since reopening, Above Ground has grown with leaps and bounds, and has moved into a dedicated facility in Suwanee, GA. We believe whole-heartedly that God has big plans for the studio. Amanda trusts Him with all of her business decisions, and with her life. We hope you feel the love and the presence of the Father when you step into Above Ground Aerial and when you climb to new heights.

 

Meet Our Staff

Amanda

Hamburger

Amanda Hamburger is the founder and owner of Above Ground. She’s a southern girl with Cajun roots, born and raised in South Louisiana. She is obsessed with aerial arts and when she’s not doing it, she’s probably thinking about it. Amanda loves hiking, traveling, and spending time with friends and family. Her aerial journey started in 2010 in the theater department of LSU. Her movement background includes multiple forms of dance, tumbling, theatre, art, and music. 

Amanda loves Jesus and people. She finds no greater joy than truly knowing people on a deeper level and helping them unlock their potential. Amanda holds an M.Ed. in Counseling which she believes aids in meeting students where they are. Aerial arts have helped her realize just how much physical and mental potential people have at any age and circumstance. Having sustained a few significant injuries in the past, Amanda spent a season learning that she had greater strength inside her than she realized. For her, it was God, determination (some call it stubbornness!), and quite a bit of P.T., while delving into aerial arts that healed her body and mind. With newfound capacity coupled with her love for performance art, it’s her goal to help others realize that same capacity within them.  

“We lose ourselves in the things we love. We find ourselves there, too.” — Kristin Martz. 

Asia Bryant

It was her first Cirque du Soleil show that made Asia fall in love with aerial. She loved everything she saw, but the silks routine was her favorite. Then one day, while signing up for a kickboxing class, she noticed they also had a silks program and realized you didn’t have to run away to the circus to do aerial arts. She booked a class in May 2016 and has been hooked ever since.

A dancer at heart, Asia enjoys all forms of movement, but nothing makes her heart sing like dancing through the air. After a few years of practicing silks and sling, she branched out to Lyra and has dabbled in other apparatuses.

Her teaching journey began as the occasional sub, but by 2019 she was a full-fledged aerial teacher. She deeply enjoys showing her love for and sharing her knowledge of aerial arts.

While she seems to always be in the aerial gym, she also finds time to read fantasy, sci-fi, and historical romance books; hand sew historical garments; and spend far too many hours playing board and video games.

Calin Cox

Calin Cox (pronounced Collin) is an aerialist with humble beginnings. His training began in Atlanta through Circus Arts Institute, where he learned the ways of Trapeze, Spanish Web, Tightwire Walking, Juggling, and (socially acceptable) Clownery. He could mount a trapeze unassisted before he could tie his shoes unassisted.

Over the years, circus has followed Calin wherever his other endeavors have taken him. While in Atlanta, he’s worked assisting classes and guiding shows. The same can be said for his time in Birmingham, AL, where he currently studies English Literature and Secondary Education at Samford University, pursuant a B.S. Ed. And a B. A.  He has taught classes and assisted in show production there, and as far as he can tell, is the only trapeze artist in the state of Alabama.

When he finds himself in those fleeting moments between work and cirque, he enjoys the company of the open sky. He considers himself an amateur outdoorsman, foraging, fishing, and learning to appreciate the limitless wonder that this planet has to offer.

Cidney Scoggins

Born and raised in Georgia, Cidney has had a strong connection to movement from a young age. She began playing softball at just four years old and started competing in year-round travel ball by the age of eight. Her involvement in sports continued through college, where she worked with both the UGA Athletic Association and the UGA Intramural Sports Department. Since graduating, she has stayed active through rock climbing and ballroom dance.

Cidney began her aerial journey four years ago when a friend invited her to an open house at a local aerial gym. Although she had always been fascinated by silks and lyra, she had never considered her movement background to be a natural segue into aerial arts. However, after that first experience, she was immediately hooked. She immersed herself in learning aerial hammock and lyra, performing in her first showcase after just three months. After two years of training, she decided to take the next step and began training as an instructor. Since then, she has taught aerial hammock and lyra, specializing in advanced lyra tricks.

What she loves most about aerial arts is the endless opportunity for self-expression. Whether focusing on mastering a difficult trick or perfecting a smooth, flowing sequence, there is always a sense of accomplishment to be found in the gym. (It’s also a great way to trick yourself into getting a workout!)

Elyssa Pate

Elyssa, determined to snag a role in a college performance of The Jungle Book (which she was told would feature some epic aerial silks), spent her entire summer becoming a circus arts enthusiast. She attempted to climb, flip, and spin her way through months of training, only to find out that the show didn’t even include silks. But by then, Elyssa had already become a full-fledged circus lover, so she just shrugged, hung upside down, and decided the jungle wasn’t ready for her anyway.

Fast forward eight years, Elyssa found herself captivated by other circus arts, especially the Lyra. Sharing its name with her favorite constellation, it seemed only fitting that she fell in love with the fluidity and grace of this aerial art—bruises and all. Outside of teaching Lyra, Elyssa is an event coordinator with a passion for live performances, creating experiences, and fostering community within groups of people. Having spent years as an actor and performer, Elyssa now carries that love into her aerial arts performances, blending her theatrical background with her passion for the circus.

Lily Tyndall

Lily started her circus journey with a pole fitness Groupon in 2012. When she moved to Louisiana and couldn’t find a pole studio she decided to try aerial, fell in love, and eventually ran away to join the circus full time at the studio and performance company she co-founded with Alaina Williams, Refuge Aerial. One of the OG AG-ers, Lily trained with and taught for Amanda in Baton Rouge from 2017-2021 and is absolutely thrilled to be working with her again in Georgia. 

Lily primarily teaches and trains on silks, sling, and lyra, including doubles work, and has dabbled in unusual apparatuses (chains, Spanish web, prism, etc). Her real love, however, is corde lisse because it makes her feel powerful and strong. It is her passion to encourage her students to do hard things physically and mentally so they too can feel powerful, strong, and confident in themselves. 

Off apparatus, you’ll likely find Lily engaging in one of her cozy hobbies like reading, knitting, and baking, talking to a long distance friend on the phone, or possibly climbing a mountain in the Alps. 

Lisa Frendahl

For all those people that are wondering if aerial is for you: If you are interested, it’s for you! I started my aerial journey in January 2018 after a friend invited me to an open house at the aerial gym she attended. When I started I couldn’t do a pull up, and to be honest, I couldn’t do a full pull up for two more years. Aerial made me stronger, but at every step of the way there were moves and goals that were safe and attainable for me. 

At this point I have been training for around 7 years. My main apparatus is sling because I enjoy how it easily allows moves to flow together into sequences, but I also enjoy the drama and challenge that aerial silks provide. While I continue to train mainly on sling and silks, I also dabble in a number of other aerial apparatuses when I get the chance. Basically, if it’s in the air I want to climb on it!   

Despite a background of working for over 10 years in the field of education, I have just recently started merging my favorite hobby with my experience teaching. As an instructor I bring my own aerial training, but I also bring the knowledge I have learned from the countless wonderful teachers and instructors I have had and worked with over the years. My goal is to help my students learn in a safe and fun way and continually support them as they work towards reaching their own goals!

Peter Logsdon

Peter was introduced to aerial acrobatics in November of 2012 when a friend hijacked him to a Trapeze class taught by Davey Swinton. He then found an aerial gym, conveniently located close to home, where he learned predominantly from Amber Monson and Kara Jones for his first year. He went from not being able to do a single pull-up to being in some of their most advanced classes! He was then invited to join an apprenticeship program to become an instructor by the end of 2013 which he completed in 2014.

Peter has continued to expand his personal skills and his teaching repertoire over the years. He teaches rope, sling, silks, aerial partnering (on multiple apparatuses), and some partner acrobatics. He also dabbles in straps, trapeze, and on rare occasions lyra.

He has been known for having a focus on technique, conditioning, and understanding of theory, as he believes this enables higher levels of safety for his students in both his classes and when they learn from others. This approach also facilitates how efficiently his students have learned new skills in the past due to not easily tiring, truly comprehending the how and why skills work, and where their body truly should be when practicing the skills they are learning. 

If you want to chat with him about other interests he has, you will have a cornucopia of options! Beyond aerial acrobatics, he also enjoys spending time with his dog (Karrah) getting in around 55-70 miles in every week with her, playing soccer, Atlanta United, 3D printing, building/painting miniatures, baking, growing fruits and vegetables, snowboarding, and most forms of gaming!

Rose Schimmel

Rose was born and raised in South Florida and recently moved to Atlanta in the summer of 2024. She has a noncompetitive background in gymnastics and dance, as well as experience with music education. Rose was introduced to aerial arts in the summer of 2016 at the age of 17. She was inspired to try out silks during her summer before senior year at a studio in South Florida, and has continued to train at a number of studios since then as she’s moved around for school.

Rose has received multiple certifications in aerial fabrics through the Circus Arts Institute, including a certification in Circus Arts Therapy, and is continually working towards more certifications. She has a BA in Psychology with a double minor in Music and Dance. She is currently in the process of obtaining her MA in Dance/Movement Therapy and Mental Health Counseling.

Rose is passionate about the therapeutic power of movement. As an aerial instructor, she prioritizes fun and safety and believes that circus is for everyone. When she’s not doing aerial, you can find Rose taking a dance class, doing schoolwork, volunteering with animals, or spending time with friends and family.