Express and Star Newspaper

I feature in todays biggest regional newspaper across the U.K the Express & Star. Here is the interview and some footage.



Aussie Ari’s amazing acrobat stunts - Saturday 9th April 2011

An Australian aerial acrobat has upped sticks from his native Sydney to live and train in Wolverhampton.
Ari Levanael, who goes by the name of Amazing Ari, is now showing off his stunning acrobatics at the Wolf Mountain climbing centre on Paget Road. Visitors to Wolf Mountain watched Ari, who now lives in Tettenhall, and applauded as he showed off his skill dangling from silk banners.
He has performed around the world and on TV since taking up the art at the age of 21.
And he has taught aspiring performers aged between five and 50.
He said: “I do lots of crazy tricks, from hanging by my neck to tumbling down to the ground.
“It’s a matter of focus. You have to be mentally focused.
Concentration
“You are hanging upside down really high and you can fall really easily if you’re not concentrating.”
He said the popularity of live stage shows by Britney Spears, Kylie and Take That, which have featured aerial acrobats, had increased the popularity of the art. He said: “It’s more accessible because of mainstream culture.
“Circus is a really big thing in pop culture. It improves your flexibility, but you don’t have to be a gymnast to do it. I think it’s for anyone.”
Ari said he had been in the UK on and off for five years and his grandfather was born in the country.
He said: “I was working in Australia doing bits and pieces but I decided to spread my wings and so I left all my work and all my family to come here and start again.
“Tettenhall’s lovely and Wolf Mountain is a great place to train because it’s got the height.”