About Viva Aerial Dance

Viva Aerial Dance is a creative circus performance and training company bringing circus, aerial, stilt and fire dance to audiences and students in Western Australia and beyond.

Founded in London in 1999, Viva grew from a passion for combining the strength and skill of aerial acrobatics with the beauty, expression and visual language of dance. From its early work pioneering aerial silks in the UK with Jane Osborn, Viva has since developed performances for major live events, television, film and audiences around the world.

Today, Viva Aerial Dance is based in the South West of Western Australia, creating performance, teaching and mentoring aerial and circus skills, and developing new work with a growing community of artists and performers.

At the heart of Viva is a belief that circus can be both beautiful and powerful, highly skilled and deeply playful — creating moments of wonder and connection for audiences while giving people the opportunity to discover their own strength, creativity and physicality.

Founded by Michèle Lainé

Viva was founded by aerial artist and creative director Michèle Lainé, who began her training in the north of England as a gymnast and scientist. She pivoted into big top touring in the UK and Europe as an aerial acrobat with Swamp Circus, co-founding Greentop Circus Centre with Brett Jackson before creating Viva Aerial Dance in 1999.

With more than 30 years of experience in performance, choreography and production, Michèle has worked internationally across live events, television and in major films as an aerial stunt artist. She is a joint holder of a Guinness World record for synchronised silks and was one of the early practitioners of aerial silks in the UK. She also holds a PhD in engineering bringing together an unusual combination of scientific curiosity, physical understanding and an eye for technical detail.

After relocating to Western Australia, Michèle has continued to develop Viva as a home for aerial dance, circus performance, training and creative collaboration - with a particular focus on building opportunities for female artists and communities in the South West.

Welcome to a new chapter in an ongoing story — creating, performing, teaching and sharing the sheer joy of being up in the air.