Marco Antonio Huicochea Gonzàlez, a budding 22-year-old dancer working for a small Chicago studio, passed away last Monday afternoon while on a rehearsal break at the studio’s venue on the north side of the city in what has become called a “freak accident.” The Chicago Police Department told reporters that a “steel aerial acrobatics ring” fell on his head, inducing blunt force trauma which caused instant death.

No other details were released by the department on its website or through spokespersons. According to the Chicago Medical Examiner’s Office, Mr. Gonzàlez was pronounced dead at 4:53 PM. The medical examiner told reporters that the primary cause of death for Huicochea Gonzàlez was blunt force trauma to the head, caused by a falling heavy object. The Office also reiterated that his death was an accident, and has ruled out any foul play.

Julie Nakagawa, the artistic director of, DanceWorks, the studio that Gonzàlez released a statement on the troupe’s website noting the distress the death has caused her and the dancer’s former colleagues.