Dan Darlington gingerly places his socked feet on the edge of the 22-foot high platform. His belt, tight like a corset around his waist, is what keeps him from falling as leans forward to grab the bar. His calloused hands place a familiar grip on the wooden apparatus, his knees bending to jump. With a leap, he goes flying down into a heart wrenching, exhilarating swing.

“It’s addicting now,” Darlington said. “I’ve been doing this for a very long time, and its allowed me to face each little fear as I go.”

This, as Darlington refers to it, is known as flying trapeze. Darlington is one of many visitors of Texas Trapeze, Austin’s premier flying trapeze and circus arts school. The school started in Austin six and a half years ago, and has since taught hundreds of people how to swing like a real trapeze artist.

“It allows me to face my fear of heights,” Darlington said. “You climb up there and you find the courage to do what’s necessary to face your fears.”

Located a ten-minute drive away from campus, on Cesar Chavez, Texas Trapeze boasts a fully rigged and netted trapeze apparatus, as well as a practice bar. The place has open hours Thursdays through Sundays, and gives solely private classes on Mondays. Participants can do one swing for $10, two swings for $15, $30 for a one hour class and $40 for an hour class with “catches,” a trick where participants are caught wrist-to-wrist in a midair swing.

“People usually take the classes because they want the experience, just to say they’ve done it, or because they actually want to learn a new art, they want a new hobby,” staff Theresa Kirby said.

Theresa has been the co-owner for Texas Trapeze for two years now, along with Russell Codona Torretto. She started participating in flying trapeze as a fun activity to do during business trips to Austin, and it made her happier than she’d ever been.

“Trapeze is so overwhelming that you’re really only thinking about holding onto that bar and trying to listen to [the instructor],” Kirby said.  “So I forgot about all the stress at home, I forgot about work and anything else I had going on and was jut able to have no stress when I’m here.”

According to History Today, the first trapeze act was performed by the French acrobat Jules Leotard on November 12, 1859. In his act he wore a tight-fitting, sleeveless garment, which was named after him shortly thereafter. He performed at theaters, swinging over people’s heads as they ate their dinner.

Today the trapeze audience dwells outside the ring, and the art is no longer limited to specific artists. Anyone has the opportunity to try out trapeze arts, through various schools across the US. Though little data exists on how exactly how many trapeze schools they are or when they begin, several do exist in the northeastern region. Many of the places are either solely flying trapeze schools, or part of a larger circus ring or training school.

For Torrentto and Kirby, maintain their school in Austin has been a struggle. The city’s lack of knowledge about the trapeze arts results in a debate about whether or not the school is following city rules and regulations, Kirby said.

“We’re not a gym, we’re not crossfit, they don’t really know where to place us honestly,” Kirby said. “We’ve invited them to just come and see what we do, to join us, and I think if they did it would really help.”

Trapeze Texas itself has seen a variety of participants, including deaf students, blind students, and even children as young as five years old. Their only limitations are against pregnant students, and students weighing over 250 lbs., Kirby said.

For beginners, the first classes include a variety of basic tricks, according to Kirby. These include the knee hang, a backflip dismount, splits, and sometimes even a hock. About 70% of the learners come for a fun experience, while 30% are actually interested in learning a new skill or improving on previous circus experience, and they have even taken  students with them to the circus, she said.

The hardest thing, according to Kirby, is swinging.

“Swinging sounds simple but it really takes years to learn and its, u need that foundation in how to swing in order to get that height for the tricks so you can get caught by a catcher.” Kirby said.

For Kirby, it’s amazing seeing people’s reactions after they’ve performed a trick.

“I think they get a huge confidence booster and they can’t imagine what they just did, and they’re like omg I just jumped off a 22 foot pedestaboard and got caught by someone,” Kirby said. “It’s really rewarding for me to get to teach people every day.”