She stands just 4 feet, 10 inches tall, but 26-year-old Danielle Ricciardi’s life is anything but small. On April 12, the Rindge resident packed up and headed to Macao, China, with the world-renowned circus show Cirque du Soleil.

“I’m very excited to go to China,” Ricciardi said. “I’m just not excited for the four flights that span over 30 hours.”

Ricciardi will perform in the Cirque du Soleil show “ZAIA” as the backup of Zaia, a young girl who dreams of one day becoming an astronaut. Ricciardi will be doing two shows a week working with straps.

“Straps basically look like seatbelts and are used for aerials and doing all sorts of contortions and spinning,” she said, “It’s one of my favorite things to do in the circus.”

“I’ve always wanted to do gymnastics as a kid, I just never took lessons,” she recalled, “I was always out on my lawn doing cartwheels, round-offs and flips.”

When she was 15, Ricciardi started to take gymnastics lessons at American School of Gymnastics in Keene and she competed all throughout high school. She went to Smith College in Northampton, Mass., to study exercise science with the intention of pursuing physical therapy.

“I went to college but wasn’t at a NCAA level to compete in gymnastics, so I found a private club and trained there,” she said.

While training, she met a man who had done the circus in Florida. “I thought it was interesting but didn’t think too much of it,” she said.

After graduating from Smith, Ricciardi, burnt out on school, wanted to explore options and pay off her debt. She came back to Rindge, heard that the American School of Gymnastics needed a coach and took the job.

Ricciardi remembers going to a Cirque du Soleil performance in Hartford, Conn., and seeing two sisters perform in the show who also happened to train at a studio in Brattleboro, Vt.

“Though I wasn’t into Cirque at the time, I saw them perform and thought ‘That’s it; I want to run away with the circus.’”

She took a few lessons in aerial fabric, then hung her own fabric at the American School and after she taught, she would practice for two hours.

“People say there’s a debate of natural ability or determination; if you’re passionate about something, you can do it,” she said.

“I remember working out in the Bubble at Franklin Pierce when I got a call from Cirque,” she said, “I had to leave because I was too excited.”

She was called for a private audition in Montreal.

“I think they had a specific role in mind for me,” she said, “It seemed urgent, but then a month later they called me with my first Cirque contract.”

Ricciardi’s first contract was with “Kooza,” a Cirque du Soleil touring show. She spent two years with “Kooza” touring the United States. She was part of the House Troupe, which is an individual act consisting of a group of people who animate throughout the show.

“There was one act where there was a really tall pole and when a guy carried it in, I got to do all sorts of tricks on it,” she said.

“Kooza” traveled all over but Ricciardi had a few favorite cities.

“Boston was definitely a great city to travel to because it was close to my family so they all got to watch me,” she said, “Denver was also amazing because from our apartment you could see the city and the mountains at the same time.”

Ricciardi said the perks are definitely a plus of being in such a famous show.

“While we were touring in Los Angeles, I got to take a picture with Reese Witherspoon and we got to meet Arnold Schwarzenegger,” she said, “We also performed on Jay Leno back when he did prime time.”

After two years with “Kooza,” Ricciardi was ready for a new challenge. As she finished up in mid January, she got a call to work with an acrobatic company in Germany that was more cabaret.

“It was very different but I really enjoyed it,” she said, “I got to do the fabrics and a few different pole numbers.”

She had been there for only a month when Cirque du Soleil called about the role that will take her to China.

“The role I was going to be playing was my ideal role, which was using straps,” Ricciardi said, “There aren’t many strap roles for women in Cirque and they’re offering me one of them!”

Ricciardi said she finds it easy to stay in shape while home from the circus. She works out every day and when she steps foot in the Bubble at Franklin Pierce, she sees it as doing her job.

“It’s up to the individual to keep in shape; they don’t push anything on you,” she said, “If you don’t want to get injured, you have to stay on top of things and maintain your condition.”

She does get quite a few looks from Franklin Pierce students as she stretches at the Bubble. “In circus, I feel like being flexible and doing crazy things is nothing special,” she laughed, “I feel like I’m crazy when I work out here and usually I try to go in the corner if I can.”

Cirque is not as easy as it looks for performers.

There is a lot of trust involved.” Ricciardi said. She was once told to try a stunt in which she would stand on one end of a seesaw while two men ran and jumped on the other end, sending her soaring into the air. “I’d be sent flying to do a number of tricks in the air and then land on a huge mat or even on someone’s shoulders,” she said, “They tried teaching me but it just wasn’t for me!”

Though working with a company like Cirque du Soleil has its pros, it definitely has its cons as well. In Ricciardi’s case, sometimes she goes months without seeing her friends and family with whom she is extremely close.

“I’ve been fortunate enough to be in the United States so I can go home easily, but now that I’m going overseas, it’s going to be much harder,” she said, “Once I leave, it’ll be at least six months until I see my family again.”

Ricciardi hopes to perform with Cirque for as long as she can.

“Age is only a number; it’s about keeping yourself healthy and knowing when to stop,” she explained, “I’d like to do it as long as I can.”

She added, “This is my world and though I’m shy, I let others into it. When I get into my zone as I perform, it’s a great feeling.”