Mia Tengco

What are the qualities that make a great dancer? How are they able to push the physical limits like they do?  

For Victoria, it's three things: Discipline. Courage. Grit. 

The SEEN Series is all about inspiration and exploring the minds of artists and change-makers. For this edition, I get front-row seats to a personal warm-up session, capture moments with my camera and ask the important questions. 

Are you wondering, how sexy do I need to be to pole dance?

Read on. Listen in.

Victoria or "Vicky" as she is more commonly known is a Pole Fitness, AerialSilk and Flexibility Instructor at Polecats, a premier dance studio in the Philippines. Vicky, I might add, is also one of my oldest friends. Although we know each other on so many levels, I wanted to zero in on her craft as a dancer and share her musings on a wider platform beyond our coffee date conversations.

*Side Note:  I’ve always admired the sharp focus and near obsession with the things she puts her mind to which is why I've asked her to be a part of this. In fact, her advice has been instrumental in my drive to put my work out here today.

Starting her pole journey almost 10 years ago, Vicky was one of Polecats' first students. In 2014, she started teaching Beginner's classes. Despite her obvious progress in this field, Vicky sometimes can't help but wonder 'Shouldn't I be better at this by now?'. Albeit sometimes appearing to be hard on herself, it is precisely this self-inquiry that motivates her to do better.

"As a teacher, I am in danger of always being in that safe space where I am just repeating things and pulling out the same party tricks during class. It's very important to learn new things because it always adds to it... New findings come out all the time and you want to make sure that what you are teaching is still relevant."

It's essential for Vicky to make her classes fun and to make her students feel good. However, she also had to gain the confidence to push them a little harder to try new things in class. 

It’s a mix, a balance she has learned to create in her teaching journey. She admits being afraid that students wouldn’t like her for it but now she trusts her ability to guide them and at the end of the day, they are thankful for that.

“I realized, that’s why they are here, so that YOU will make them do it. No one comes to an exercise class without thinking they’re going to exert themselves.”

So, how sexy do you really need to be to pole dance?

Vicky shares that she was not always naturally inclined to dance sexy. She had to learn that along the way. But since her pole journey started, she has noticed how much more confidently she carries her own body ("a gazillion times", in fact). And like anything in this craft, she believes that students can build on the sexy just like a move or trick they build on in class. 

"I understand that it's intimidating. It can be very disarming. But I say, just give it a chance."

There seems to be more going on here than the just the physical aspect of "sexiness" though. 

From what I gather, pole dancing has not only evolved into this accessible fitness workout, but perhaps more importantly, it has become a space to actually allow yourself to feel sexy and to feel empowered.