Meet our August 2023 Teacher Feature: Pole instructor Marianne Dabir and Aerial Instructor Adam Tabellija. If you haven’t taken class with them yet, we hope you get to know them a little better; and if you’ve already taken their classes, maybe you’ll learn something new! Best of all, enjoy classes with Marianne and Adam for $25 throughout the month of August!
Take class with Marianne: Use code BPMARIANNE
Take class with Adam: Use code BPADAM
**PLEASE NOTE: instructor discount codes are only valid for classes with Marianne and Adam. Using the codes for any other instructor will result in early cancellation or a $45 single class purchase. No exceptions.
MEET MARIANNE DABIR
Which apparatus do you teach?
All pole all the time 🙂
What is your training and background in pole dance?
I took ballet and jazz classes from ages 3-12, and then thought my dancing days were over. As an adult, I immersed myself in weight training for two years before I found pole, which gave me a solid strength foundation for aerial dance.
How did you transition from student to teacher?
In 2021, as studios started to re-open and taking in-person classes became a possibility again, I noticed a lot of my peers in the community becoming instructors. I had taken elevatED Pole 1 in January 2020 (editor’s note: there’s another elevatED Pole 1 coming up October 16-18!), and had spent the past year in lockdown honing my own movement style and pole repertoire on my home pole. I was also freelancing at the time, so my schedule was flexible, and I was starting to suspect that my career at the time wasn’t ever going to feel fulfilling to me. I had dreamed of becoming a pole instructor ever since I started taking classes, and all of a sudden I found myself in the perfect place to take that step and make my dream come true!
Are there any teachers that impacted your pole journey, and if so, what gift did they give you?
Magnus Labbe taught me how to channel strength into seamless fluidity, and gave me so many shapes and transitions that still come through in my aerial flows. Jeni Janover helped me solidify and celebrate the foundational movements that are necessary for dancing beautifully and safely, both in and out of heels. Carmine Black has taught me a great deal about body awareness and flow, and has had a huge impact on how I learn and teach. Stella Fink has shown me how to infuse my personal touch into my classes with confidence.
What makes your classes unique?
I prefer high intention over high energy. I aim to cultivate a soft, spacious container for my classes with enough room for personal exploration and refinement. I love that all bodies and brains are different, so I enjoy meeting students wherever they are and providing different options and routes for them to achieve their goals. Most of all, I try not to get attached to a specific outcome and stay focused on the energy in the room and the learning process itself!
How do you motivate students when you walk into a class with low energy?
It’s an honor that my students give me the gift of their time, and so I’m always honest with them if I’m not feeling 100%. If my body is tired, I shift my class plan to be less strenuous, and more focused on fluidity and refinement, which always stirs up excitement and creativity.
How do you motivate yourself?
I remind myself that I get to do what I love, and love what I do! It’s an enormous privilege.
What’s your favorite playlist to jam to?
Even on my lowest energy, zero motivation days, Deftones gives me the momentum I need to dance. I am also very into my Thursday night VIP Room Heels Flow playlist right now.
What is the best advice you can give to someone starting out in pole dance?
Know that you have your own unique strengths and talents, and that there is a home for them in the pole studio.
What was the most embarrassing thing that happened to you in class (as a student or a teacher)?
Not wearing high waisted shorts when teaching Superman. I’ve made that mistake several times!
What future projects are you working on?
I’m performing for a student’s EP release party in a few weeks, which I’m very excited about! I am dedicating the next few months to deepening my personal practice and enhancing my teaching skills, and plan to start teaching virtual classes and privates this winter. Also, my husband and I are also going to start fostering pets soon 🙂
See Marianne’s schedule here
Follow Marianne on Instagram @carbzz__
MEET ADAM TABELLIJA
Which apparatus do you teach?
They call me…LyraDaddy
What is your training and background in aerial dance?
I started my aerial journey at B+P in 2015, after seeing aerial incorporated into a stage production with Company XIV.
How did you transition from student to teacher?
I was welcomed on board as a B+P work-study in 2016, which I completed in 2017. After the pandemic, I recommitted myself to aerial, and began teaching in 2022. As a stage performer and a former personal trainer, I knew I had a knack for concisely communicating skills and techniques, and have been enjoying crossing that skill set over into my teaching style.
Are there any teachers that impacted your aerial journey, and if so, what gift did they give you?
Summer Lacy is my OG hoop ninja and Anna Thomas Henry helped me fall in LOVE with silks. Their technical prowess and attention to detail laid an incredibly solid foundation for me as an aerialist and an instructor.
What makes your classes unique?
My theatrical background infuses my teaching style and my sequencing. I love imparting a sense of intention behind movement, helping students stay activated and energized throughout every skill, and to always consider what the audience sees from the ground.
How do you motivate students when you walk into a class with low energy?
My energy level is incessantly bright – even when I’m exhausted. But I also think my warmups are truly a full body experience that wakes you up from head to toe.
How do you motivate yourself?
Aerial is something that not only improves my abilities on stage, but feeds a need for personal creativity and physical maintenance. I see my body as an instrument in everything I do, and aerial keeps it fine-tuned. And when training is this much fun, it’s easy to keep coming back for more!
What’s your favorite playlist to jam to?
You will be subjected to plenty of niche 90s pop/R&B jams, the entire discography of Britney Spears, and plenty of pulsating, flowy tracks in Fluidity.
What is the best advice you can give to someone starting out in aerial dance?
KEEP. GOING.
What was the most embarrassing thing that happened to you in class (as a student or a teacher)?
I don’t think I’ve ever felt embarrassed in class! Class is the place to make mistakes and not feel bad about it.
What future projects are you working on?
I’m SO excited to be joining Company XIV in Cocktail Magique starting this September!
See Adam’s schedule here
Follow Adam on Instagram @adam.tabellija
