At the end of October, the incomparable Natasha Wang visited our studio to teach workshops of some of her inventive style. She also graciously agreed to an interview for our blog! If you’re not familiar with her, I highly recommend looking her up. She is one of the progenitors of pole as we know it.
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Lotus Fitness Blog: You are widely considered one of the biggest name, OG pole stars, and an originator of pole as art and sport. Pole fitness has obviously exploded in the past several years. How do you feel about the direction pole has gone, and how it has changed?
Natasha Wang: It’s been pretty cool seeing the development of all these different stylistic genres of pole movement. When I started in 2006, pole had only just left the strip clubs, so the ‘sexy’ style was the only option. Now there are competitions and showcases catering to every style imaginable, and I think it’s great. It makes pole more inclusive and accessible.
A few years ago, the trend swung towards the ‘pole fitness’ and ‘pole sport’ side of things, and I think what happened was that once the tricks and movement attained such a high level of difficulty that casual polers started feeling like they needed a lifetime of training in dance or gymnastics in order to do the moves, then the pendulum swung back to sexy, and that’s the style that’s in vogue right now.
LFB: On a related note, after many years of poling, how do you keep it fresh and interesting for youself? How do you keep from getting bored?
NW: I definitely go through phases in which I’m unmotivated and uninspired, and it usually happens when I’m on long teaching trips or when I’ve just come home from one. I’m experiencing one right now, in fact! To get out of it, I have to approach pole like play again. That means giving myself creative directives each time I train that turns pole into play. This can be anything from studying old videos and trying to recreate combos in reverse or backwards, exploring new contact points, or sometimes it means getting out of the studio and taking my movement elsewhere. I go outside for a hike, take a yoga class, go running or do handstands in the park.
LFB: You started pole as an adult with no other dance/gymnastics background, yet your performances are known for their dancerly quality. How did you develop the “dance” aspects of your style?
NW: I used to do quite a bit of performing in Los Angeles, back when I used to perform with the Girl Next Door show, and that was a great training ground. I also started pole at S Factor, which taught me how to freestyle and listen and feel the music. So while I don’t necessary consider what I do ‘dance’ in the traditional or classical sense, I definitely ‘feel’ the music, which gives the illusion that I’m dancing, I guess.
LFB: Do you do any cross training now? If so, what do you do?
NW: I take classes at Orange Theory, which combines treadmill, rower and weights/bodyweight workouts. I try to go about 2-3 a week. I also go to Yogaworks about 2-3 times a week.
LFB: In your opinion (be totally subjective!), what is the most important element in creating an engaging performance?
NW: An engaging performance to me, is someone who is connected to their movement and their music, and who moves with intention. That means someone who doesn’t just string together an arbitrary group of movements, but who selects movement based on the music and the story they are telling.
LFB: It seems like you are always travelling, working, and being a general badass. If you ever get a little down time, what’s your favorite way to spend it? Any projects coming up we should keep our eyes peeled for?
NW: I travel so much that I often return home and forget how to spend down time. I’m just not used to it. I decided this year to focus more on personal development and growth. I spent a week as a student at the Insight Movement Pole Camp in Seoul, Korea run by my friends Nadia Sharif, So Young Yun and Hansabu, and 10 days in Boulder at Marlo Fisken and Kenneth Kao’s AnthroPoleogy Retreat. I’m also attending my first seminar with Tom Weksler in Berkeley, CA in February. I want to expand my movement knowledge to encompass much more than just pole.
As for projects to look out for, I recently dipped a toe in jewelry design recently, and will be releasing some items in November in time for Black Friday/Cyber Monday that will be up on my website www.natashawang.com 🙂
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We extend our deepest thanks to Natasha for taking time out of her jam-packed schedule to complete this interview for us, and for gracing our studio! We will definitely look forward to seeing those new jewelry designs this month. Keep an eye on our schedule for more amazing workshops with your favorite aerial stars. See you in the air!
