FierceUgly.com

     Pole dancing is comparatively a new genre of dance rarely performed on free to air TV unlike Salsa, Jazz and Hip Hop who have enjoyed 40 years of TV exposure. The Pole dancing community was understandably excited last week when ‘So You Think You Can Dance Australia’ created a pole dancing profile to be aired that Sunday night.  However the piece was cut from the final edit, deemed as too raunchy. Hilarious taking into account that the routines that the contestants perform have them in next nothing riding each others faces, spanking and banging each other from behind and kissing passionately after a simulated punch up.  A disappointing development as it would have been refreshing to see some pole dancers with actual talent rock out with some mad tricks on prime time TV. This would have been an educational change from the usual lame representation the poles get as they co-star with those bored strippers in the seedy clubs of CSI land.

     Oh well hooray for pole dancing! Seeing as the bozos at SUTUCDance promoted the spot when it didn’t even go to air, which provoked a barrage of inquiries at pole dancing studios around the country.
    
     Since a recent Inside Sport article on the elite sport of competitive pole dancing, the madams of the pole dancing world ‘The Pole Dancing Federation’ have been lobbying to get pole dancing into the Olympics…. fat chance there. Now don’t get me wrong these girls defy gravity in their routines. Hopefully one day The Olympic federation will be prepared for pole to become an Olympic sport alongside synchronised swimming and gymnastics. Maybe by the year 2300, by then the poles could be made from fibre optic cables and be invisible, and then it wouldn’t be pole dancing anyway.

     The madams of the pole-dancing world have also legislated that high heels must be worn when competing for the crown of ‘Miss Pole Dance World ’.  It seems a breed of flat footed entrants have been murdering the glamour with their bare footed clown routines. No seriously dressed as clowns. Lets keep it sexy ladies, and so the federation has spoken and passed the ruling that, all contenders must wear appropriately skanky outfits and stripper stilettos.  How wonderful! Keeping it real.

     The pole dancing fitness craze that hit the world over 5 years ago, taking this gyrating form of dance from the strip clubs to the dance studios, continues to grow in popularity every day.  Pole dancing for fun and fitness has slowly gained a bigger and wider fan base attracting more professional women looking for a way to escape their everyday and immerse themselves in the surreal world of pink disco lights, hot pants and thigh high PVC boots. A liberating experience for women, without having to venture into a dingy club or act out this desire moonlighting as a stripper, not always the best career move. Once dismissed as a fad this means of keeping in shape has proven to be a stayer, with new studios opening up all around the world with classes booked out months in advance.

     Considering the ancient art of exotic dance has survived many years of divided social attitude it is wonderful to think that it has maintained its naughty allure. It seems that until women see a pole-dancing studio, try to swing of a pole or learn a basic hip grind to some pumping JT or Britney they don’t realise  how much fun this really is. The thought of performing for a man is so far from their minds, as they revel in their own nasty girl fantasy.

     There are many new styles of pole dancing evolving. Static pole is where the pole is extremely high but stationary. Manoeuvres of a great degree of difficulty are performed at a great height. Spinning poles rotate from the floor and roof as the dancer holds herself in amazing positions up the pole controlling her speed like an ice skater, using her body weight distribution to control the speed. Golden oldies pole is also a new style aimed at women who may be larger or more mature and have trouble lifting them selves off the ground in the first place, this class focuses more on circular hip movements and easier choreography. Exotica is also another form of exotic dance that doesn’t use a pole at all, a floor mat is utilised instead, now this is where yoga gets sexy.
So lets be honest, I hope that observing the female body undulating, contorting and stretching seamlessly around a pole, whilst hanging by one foot is something that never looses its appeal.