Who we are
Who We AreMatica is the creative collaboration of Joel Melendez and Heidi Kirchofer, a duo whose diverse backgrounds fuel their dynamic performances and teaching. Joel, born in Venezuela, dedicated his youth to soccer, basketball, and martial arts before discovering his passion for circus and Capoeira. Heidi, a lifelong mover, grew up as a competitive equestrian before immersing herself in yoga, dance, and circus.
Their journey together began in 1999, traveling through Central and South America—street performing, fire dancing, making music, and jewelry. Over the years, they honed their skills, blending circus, aerial performance, acrobatics, and world music into unforgettable shows. Today, Matica Arts specializes in high-energy entertainment for family, corporate events, galas, festivals, and more, featuring stunning aerial acts, fire artistry, stilt walking, unicycling, and vibrant juggling-all brought to life with handcrafted costumes.
Beyond performing, Joel and Heidi are passionate educators. Through workshops, school programs, and their studio, Thrive Movement Studio, they inspire creativity, confidence, and physical expression in students of all ages. Whether on stage or in the classroom, Matica Arts is about movement, storytelling, and the transformative power of circus.
"Dear Heidi,
The rest of the first grade team would like to express our gratitude to you for coming to Sanchez school and teaching our students math through movement. Our students were highly interested in the concepts you taught them. As teachers, we are excited to share your ideas in the future with our classes. We personally would never have thought about dancing with half of our bodies. It was so much fun to have you be a part of our classroom for the three days you were with us. Our students seemed so much more calm the days you were here as well, which really shows that exercise in the early morning does impact academic performance.
Thank you! We hope to see you again in the future!
Sincerely,
Kaitlin Delipman, Nilda Medina, Maria Colon, and Kathleen Colter
!st grade team and Sanchez School, Hartford, CT
1st grade team, Sanchez school, Whole body math