From striptease to theater art: how pole dancing conquered the world's stages

Pole dancing has shed its adult entertainment origins to emerge as a legitimate art form, captivating audiences on theater stages and in performance venues worldwide. Once confined to strip clubs and cabaret scenes, the discipline now allows artists to tell compelling stories about identity, family, and even medical diagnoses.

Performers are pushing the boundaries of pole dancing, transforming it into a powerful medium for artistic expression. This evolution is highlighted by shows at the Edinburgh Fringe festival, where artists use the pole not just for feats of strength and acrobatics, but to convey complex narratives. The physical demands of pole dancing, which can appear to defy the laws of physics, are central to its appeal, drawing in both performers and audiences.

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It is a visually stunning thing, but also, because I am a lifelong athlete, the effort, the exhaustion, and the physical challenge are truly appealing. You can do things that seem to defy the laws of physics. It is magnetic to watch and I immediately saw a lot of potential in it as an art form.

From its rise in popularity in the 1990s, pole dancing has transitioned into dedicated dance studios and competitive sports. There's even a growing movement advocating for its inclusion in the Olympic Games. Dancers like Gina Alm, who discovered pole dancing through YouTube at 15, describe it as visually stunning and physically exhilarating. Alm, a lifelong athlete, is drawn to the exhaustion and challenge, finding the ability to perform seemingly physics-defying moves magnetic.

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I can just stop my thoughts and move to the music. It's like time stops.

Yvonne Smink, a former climber, found a natural transition to pole dancing, leveraging her strength, balance, and grip techniques. She has achieved national championship titles in the Netherlands and views pole dancing as a form of movement therapy, allowing her to quiet her mind and lose herself in the music. For Smink, the experience is akin to time stopping.

Alm emphasizes that pole dancing can be appreciated from multiple perspectives, extending far beyond its historical association with the sex industry. "People can appreciate how sexy it is, how athletic it is. It can be a work of art or a form of dance-theater," she states. Alongside fellow performer Donna Carnow, a US national champion with a contemporary dance background, Alm presents "Dusk/Night/Dawn," a show described as a dreamlike journey through their world, performed on a New York cabaret stage.

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I think pole dancing contains a lot of things. People can appreciate how sexy it is, how athletic it is. It can be a work of art or a form of dance-theater.