If you follow my Facebook page, you’ll know that I recently began taking class with the lovely Sparrowhawk (Iris) here in LA. She teaches a class at Metamorphosis: Mind, Body, and Pole called “Free Dance Pole and Exploration”…and I am in love!

As of late, I’ve been feeling really disconnected from pole. Taking time off over the holidays did not help, as my strength and endurance took a hit, which causes me to feel even more at odds with the movement. So, I found myself gravitating more toward dancing. Not throwing in many tricks, but just working on the floor, or around the pole. It helped me feel the joy I had been missing from my trick attempts.

Iris’s class is based in that very element: moving away from the drive to be so trick oriented, and focusing on the freedom that can come from letting go within the movement. However you choose to express it is fine, because your movement is yours. She sets parameters for each guided exploration, and you explore within those parameters. It’s incredibly freeing in a weird way – whenever I dance in her class, I find myself being aware of when I am not lost in the moment. I know when I am in my head, and I then have the opportunity to choose to let go again. I get to explore things organically, see where I bump up against challenges, see where I open up to certain things, and more. Most of all, I get to move and enjoy the movement without the feeling of needing to nail whatever I am doing (or, related to that, feeling so bad that I am not nailing anything).

On Thursday, it happened to be just myself and Iris in class, so we taped our exercises for the purpose of watching them after each dance (in a larger class, we do rounds and watch each other, although taping is permitted). I gave Iris permission to post it, so she created a supercut of the work we did, along with some info about the class and each exercise. Here is the video:

This class is beyond yummy. I love it. I love getting to MOVE and DANCE in a way that is expressive. I miss acting, and this is a way for me to explore that sort of expression again. I love getting to move in a way that allows me to feel confident, as opposed to feeling so down about not nailing tricks, or about feeling so tired after taking time off. I love the idea of exploring exercises, even when I run into something confronting.

I think what Iris is doing is so important, and I also believe there’s a place for it in our community. I suspect it is where we are headed next, too – a return to the organic nature of dance and a celebration of movement for each individual, as opposed to feeling like we have to fit into some box of This Is Good or What Is Acceptable.

If you’re in LA/SoCal, come check out Iris’s class sometime. It’s well worth it. The class is currently on Thursday nights at 6pm, in Studio City, but the time/date may change in the future. Full details can be found on the Meta website. And, if you aren’t, watch the video above and think about some of the explanations she has included. Consider playing these explorations on your own. Even when I am not in her class (because I can’t always make it), I have begun to try to incorporate the ideas into my free styles. Below is one that I recorded today, at The Pole Garage. All I focused on this time was not being in my head, following the movement where it lead me, and including one inversion on the pole. So, you see, you can set whatever parameters you want for yourself. The most important thing is to allow yourself the freedom to explore without judgement. 🙂