About poledance

Poledancing is a very special sport…a sport? Yes, poledancing is a sport fore sure. It is hard to find another sport that requires so much strength, flexilbity, spatial awareness and body conditioning. You will need all your muscles to perform a move correctly, and during a dance you will get the benefit of a full body conditioning workout. Let’s summarise…poledance is a total sport. Are you still thinking it’s just for nightclubs? Read on…

History

Poledancing, also known as acrobatics using a pole, has ancient roots. Even in the old ages in China and India people trained their bodies by doing Chinese Pole or Mallakhamb using a (usually wooden) pole to perform acrobatic tricks. Chinese Pole has developed into a well-known circus act that you can even see in Cirque du Soleil whereas Mallakhamb is still a very popular and competitive sport in India. Many tricks and moves that originate from these sports can still be seen today in modern poledancing.

Different stories exist about the history of the sensual style of poledancing . One of these stories tells of women dancing in tents during fairs and parties in the Middle-Ages. These women were trying to entertain the crowd (mainly the male part of that crowd). Lack of space in these tents forced the woman to use the construction-poles of the tents and poledancing was born. Other stories also link to ritual Maypole dances. Whilst the official origin of poledancing is not clear it is true that poledancing is indeed something you can also see in nightclubs. And it will not dissapear soon…

Sporty poledancing

Since 1980 a new trend developed: poledancing in a sporty fashion consisting of exercises aimed at gaining strength and flexibility. The trend started in Canada and the USA and reached Europe a couple of years later. Poledancing as a sport has gained momentum in the Netherlands since about 2005. Of course, some prejudices had to be removed first. But today, in 2011, poledancing is beginning to be accepted as a true sport. The number of gyms that teach poledancing is ever increasing and the Netherlands has a number of schools dedicated to poledancing only, each with their own vision about what poledancing means.

Poledance at Studio Ad astra

As we at Studio Ad Astra have a strong background in gymnastics, we focus on the acrobatic side of poledance. A major part of the techniques in poledance can be linked to basic elements from gymnastics or Chinese Pole. We pay special attention to these basics and correct and safe execution of a move.

At Studio Ad Astra we teach artistic poledance which means that we also work on choreography, music, costumes, techniques and dance. All these aspect combined will result in a perfect en personalized routine. Artistic also means that you are free to do whatever you want. Poledancing can be combined with all other styles of dance such as hip-hop, ballet, belly-dance, tango… everything is possible, as long as you feel good!

Competitions

Like in every other sport, poledancers want to show and compare their abilities. Therefore, an increasing number of competitions are being organised nowadays. Studio Ad Astra has gained lots of experience at national and international competitions such as European and World Championships.