Verticality: a metaphor for the spine
Artistic approach
Both the foundation of Fred Deb’s work and its driving force, verticality is at once structure and impulse, point of support and impetus for movement.
A foundation, because it places the body in a direct relationship with the laws of gravity, with grounding, with the physical reality of the world. A necessity, because it calls for a form of transcendence: a reaching toward elevation, toward a space larger than oneself.
Aerial dance is part of this dynamic: it demands total presence and precision of gesture, refined to its purest form. This paring-down reveals the essential: an inhabited, traversed movement that links the inner self to the outer world.
In this approach, virtuosity is not put on display — it transforms. It serves a presence, a quality of being, a state; it becomes a language, a sensitive form of writing through movement. Suspended between sky and earth, the body engages in a delicate relationship between strength and release, control and surrender.
At the crossroads of disciplines, Fred develops a singular choreographic language in which technique and intuition converse in harmony. Her world moves between grounding and elevation, power and finesse, structure and freedom.
A story
A wonderful opportunity to look back on this journey, and to honor a passion.
Telling the origin story of Aerial Silks, the symbolism of this long vertical drape: spine or garment, opening up a whole field of possibility in suspension, defying gravity!
A journey
Eager to explore different art forms, Fred brings her personality and enthusiasm to numerous shows performed across the globe. She began her career with the renowned French company Les Arts Sauts, with whom she toured for several years.
Training: Graduate of the Centre National des Arts du Cirque (CNAC) in 1992, holder of the State Diploma for Circus Teachers (Diplôme d'État de professeur de cirque) obtained via professional accreditation (VAE) in 2017.
Highlights from an international career
Teaching
Fred passes on a demanding and poetic vision of movement; her teaching invites each person to fully inhabit their body and reveal their own personal expression by exploring an authentic, expressive quality of movement. She guides dancers and artists in refining their stage presence and discovering their own physical identity.
A teaching career
Fred Deb’ devoted herself to teaching early on, developing her own learning method. A pioneer in her field, particularly in rope and aerial silks, she has been invited to teach around the world at numerous aerial dance festivals.
Aerial Dance Academy, Tokyo, (2004), Aerial Dance Festival 2026 – Aerial Dance Classes Boulder | Frequent Flyers (2005 to 2008), European Aerial Dance Festival, Brighton, UK, (2010 to 2013), Irish Aerial Art Festival, Letterkenny, Ireland, (2012), Santa Barbara Floor to Air Festival, Santa Barbara, USA, (2014), Aerial Edge Circus Convention, Glasgow, UK, (2017 / 2018), Aerial Art Festival, Berlin, Germany, (2019)
In 2014, Circus Now organized a workshop tour across North America (Boston, Atlanta, New York, Portland, Toronto, Edmonton).
Alongside this, Fred Deb’ worked in Central America in 2006, in 2008 and 2009, then in early 2011, with local companies, also organizing public workshops
Teaching at advanced circus schools
Between 2008 and 2019, Fred Deb’ taught at the Academy for Circus and Performance Art (ACaPA), the advanced circus school in Tilburg (Netherlands), and occasionally at CODARTS, the advanced circus school in Rotterdam.
Head of the aerial department at the Jules Verne Circus School, Amiens, between 2018 and 2020.
In 2019, she taught at the École Nationale de Cirque de Rosny-sous-Bois (ENACR).
In 2009, Fred created the festival ``Les Rencontres de Danse Aérienne``.
This event brings together the community of enthusiasts of the discipline in a space dedicated to aerial arts, allowing them to refine their skills and develop their artistic language.
