The Gyronauts: Hoop is a Verb!

I met Tash — a.k.a. Natasha Kouri — the other day on Bedford Avenue in Williamsburg, where she was selling her creations: a wide assortment of hoops that she describes as “colorful, sparkly, shiny and gyrotastic”. Four-year-old Leelee was with me, and she had been wanting a new hula hoop since the one I bought her a few months ago got broken. Tash said no problem, she would specially make one for Leelee’s diminutive size.

Tash in hoop performance

I discovered that, in addition to making the beautiful hoops, Tash also does hoop performances that have been described as “majestic and formidable” — employing body paint and fire — and that her NYC based troupe, The Gyronauts, has had some great gigs. They’ve performed from Florence to Buenos Aires, and also at NYC’s Mermaid and Halloween parades, and as a part of performances at concerts with rock bands such as The Dresden Dolls… I sensed some hoopla, indeed, so I grew more curious.

The Gyronauts in performance

An online source describes a hula hoop fad that took place in the 50’s, although hooping has actually been around for several thousand years. And the difference now is that hoops are much larger than the hula hoops one might have encountered as a child. Also, hooping is said to be quite an inclusive activity: one needn’t be a gymnast or dancer because “the bigger and heavier the hoop, the slower it rotates around your body.” So, with one of the larger hoops, almost anyone can hoop, “regardless of age, size, or sense of rhythm.”

Tash was also involved with a troupe of hoop performers at this year’s Burning Man festival in the Black Rock Desert in Nevada. And, according to the New York Times, she was among 80 people working four hours a night, three nights a week, for three months preparing costumes and sets which they transported out west for their festival performance the week before Labor Day.

For more photos and information on Tash and the Gyronauts, visit their myspace page.

“Hula Hoop” by Rita Paul

Photo credits: Kerry McClain; Natasha Kouri
Sculpture: “Hula Hoop”, by Rita Paul

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