How pole dance gave me a new relationship with movement

This International Day of People with Disabilities, The D*List is embracing play, and what that means to us as disabled people. We called for community submissions and how people incorporate play in their lives. In this submission, Claudia Rose describes how pole dance gave her a newfound confidence in her body.

Movement and play have often felt scary and uncomfortable to me. Physical activities have never been something I’ve been particularly good at… At school, I would sit out of P.E., and I’d been discharged by physios due to them not being able to do much with me. 

But I’ve recently discovered play isn’t unproductive; it’s powerful. It’s something I believe we all need to invest more time in. It connects us with ourselves and to our inner child. Up until last year, I felt that I had to present myself as being responsible and someone who had everything together in order to prove myself to others. Yet, this all changed following one conversation.

In 2024, I was talking to someone at an aerials showcase. She gestured to the aerial apparatuses and asked if I did anything like the gravity-defying performers who would soon appear. I admit, I was very shocked at the question and initially wasn’t sure how to answer other than a surprised ‘no’, gesturing to my wheelchair. Her response? “Well, why not?” 

This kind stranger, Amy, happened to be a pole dance instructor and a talented performer herself. So, after thinking it over, I contacted her and asked if she knew of anyone willing to take me on as a pole dance student. I took a chance. It turned out to be one of the best decisions I’d ever made. 

Pole dance has provided me with a different relationship to movement. It has given me freedom, joy, confidence, and has empowered me. It’s a space where I can experiment with movement safely, without judgement, and somewhere I can just be me. I am immensely grateful to have found an instructor who has been happy to teach me and learn alongside me in adapting movements that work for my body.

I leave the studio sometimes with a sore stomach or face, simply from laughing. It has truly been life-changing for me, and I am so thankful to have been welcomed and accepted into this space. It’s somewhere that I don't feel like I have to pretend. Somewhere I can be my whole sparkly, silly, weird, chaotic self.

This year, I competed in the NZ Amateur Pole Performer (NZAPP) competition. As my instructor was one of the judges, I have spent the last few months working with another great instructor, Mel. My routine was based around the term ‘wheelchair bound’. The term has often been used to refer to me in many settings; it’s always made me feel a bit uncomfortable. 

Mobility aids give people freedom. If I didn’t have my wheelchair, I’d be stuck sitting somewhere. Forever in one place. Watching Netflix forever. Which, admittedly, I do a lot of, but my wheelchair gives me options. My chair allows me to meet up with friends, to walk my dog, to get to and from places in and outside my home, and it allows me to dance and move. So I'm not bound to it. It gives me the ability to move and be part of society.

As part of the performance, I used ropes and utilised my chair. It wasn’t just there; it was part of the routine itself. I feel proud of it and how I conveyed this concept. It was really about the freedom and joy I’ve found since starting pole. 

Outside of the pole studio, I have also taken up virtual adaptive dance classes. These are based in LA and run by the one and only Kaylee Bays. Kaylee created her own studio, Studio Slay, as a way to teach dancers all over the world how to dance and adapt movements for all kinds of abilities. This has helped in being able to figure out what works for me, to meet other disabled dancers, and to just keep discovering and experimenting with movement.

Since rolling into the pole studio for the first time, I’ve been able to enjoy moving and discovering what my body CAN do, rather than what it can’t do. It has been incredible. And this is only the beginning. I can't wait to see what might happen next on my pole journey.

Be silly. Do something just because it seems fun. Don’t worry about what others say or do. ‘Disability’ is more about society and our environments; it’s not us. So, breaking free of this, even if it’s simply doing something frivolous in a world of burnout and overworking, is an act of rebellion and bravery. 

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