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Accountant by Day, Pole Dancer by Night
April 18, 2009
Article written by Nicole Ebat, student at Columbia University
She spends her days tapping at computer keys, caught in the luminosity of the screen—
crunching numbers. But by night, her alter ego appears, twisting and twirling, slithering
and swirling. All with the agility of an alley cat. It sounds like the intro to a comic about
Catwoman, but this is Angela Reininga’s story.
The 4-foot-11-inch woman has hair and personality to make up for her stature: fiery,
voluminous and flowing. Some think of Reininga as an accountant and some the owner
and teacher of Pole Velocity, a pole dance company she runs out of her home, but all will
say she is a woman with a playful spirit.
“Angela is probably the person who most surprises me with what makes her tick.” said co-
worker Theresa Zych. “Quiet country girl she is not.”
Reininga comes from a peaceful, conservative family in Evansville, Ind. who always
supported her dance habits in ballet, jazz and tap. But when Reininga turned to pole
dancing three years ago, she didn’t think they would understand. “I didn’t tell my family
that I was into pole until well after my business was up and going. In the end, they found
out from MySpace,” she said.
Her brother-in-law had seen a news report warning of the dangers of the internet. “For
some reason, he decided to look me up on MySpace,” said Reininga, who uses her
business name as her screen identity. Reininga does have her name attached to her
MySpace account, however, making a search easy.
“On Christmas Eve, we were sitting on the couch and all of a sudden he says ‘so, what’s
with this pole thing on MySpace? You should have just told us!’ “I was really startled”.
She started to describe the benefits of pole dancing, but her brother-in-law had already
done his homework. “We don’t care!” he told her. Reininga’s sister now has a pole of her
own and a five-year-old daughter who can scale her way to the top.
She’s still working on her mom though. “My mom knows it’s good, but still doesn’t quite
get it,” she said. Reininga says her mom doesn’t have any problems with her pole dancing,
but she doesn’t know much about the activity.
When Reininga first picked up pole dancing as an exercise, she was forced to learn from
videos that did little more than give the names of tricks and spins. But she was intent on
improving her upper body strength and learning a new skill. There just weren’t any studios
with people to coach her through the complicated movements, which is why she decided to
open Pole Velocity Dance and Fitness. But it was a slow start for her.
“I had a really tough time in the beginning,” she said “People didn’t quite know what it was
or why a woman would want to do it.”
At the time, the women who did take classes from her weren’t telling anybody about it. But
Reininga has grown from one bachelorette party a month to up to 16 classes a week with
numerous parties and private lessons thrown in. She attributes the rise in business
partially to pole dancing’s growing exposure in the general populace.
“She’s a survivor for sure,” said Zych “I envy her that she hasn’t let slow business times
get her down.”
A thing like a little recession isn’t going to be enough to stop Reininga, says Linda Stewart,
who, at 50, is Reininga’s oldest student. “She’s very friendly, enthusiastic and promotes a
fun atmosphere, she’s very supportive and encouraging.” said Stewart “I especially like
that she is always willing to take a picture of me when I’ve finally learned and can execute a
difficult [move].”
Reininga’s students attend Pole Velocity because of the studio space just as much as
because of the teacher.
“Since she teaches the classes out of her home, I don’t have to worry about creepy guys
looking at me while I practice,” said Ashley Downey-Easter, another student.
Reininga emptied out the living room of her small, one bedroom apartment in Ravenswood
to create an intimate, relaxing space. Gleaming, hardwood floors allow students to spin
around poles with ease while providing enough traction to prevent spills. Bright windows
lining one side of the room are covered with sheer, rusty fabric edged with beads that
rustle in the breeze. A wavy, Moroccan henna- lamp is placed in each corner, giving off just
a touch of romantic glow.
Opposite a row of mirrors, three poles reach between the floor and ceiling. Reininga
explained that she didn’t have to destroy her apartment to install these poles--they’re
completely portable and safe.
The poles are secured by screwing the metal adjuster to fit between the floor and the
ceiling, locking the pole into place. Her favorite feature of her poles? They’re flexible. By
rotating a tiny screw, she can turn the poles from static to spinning so her students can
“spin as long as they want” until they choose to stop.
Sure, the poles are obvious, but there’s something much more prominent and favored by
Reininga’s students: her shoe collection.
A wooden case full of what can only be deemed as “stripper stilettos” lines the hall. There
are 20 pairs in this case alone with a tower of shoe boxes leaning against it.
Another procession of lustrous platforms lies beneath the window. Other colorful pairs are
sprinkled throughout the room as decoration.
But Reininga insists there’s a reason for the shoes. “I am 4 feet 11 inches tall, but in my
platforms I am 5 feet 6 inches tall--I wear them so I can get more height and spin more.” she
said “Most shoes are vinyl, so they stick better to help you climb the pole.”
Reininga says many students take time to admire her stockpile of shoes in between
classes. Stewart remarked that Reininga reawakened her love of “sexy, pretty shoes.”
So, why does Reininga have so many?
“I love shoes and there are hundreds to choose from and so many different styles.” she
said “So why not?”
In the mean time, keep your eyes peeled for this pole kitten accountant--she may come
home as your next pole dancing champion one day.
April 18, 2009
Article written by Nicole Ebat, student at Columbia University
She spends her days tapping at computer keys, caught in the luminosity of the screen—
crunching numbers. But by night, her alter ego appears, twisting and twirling, slithering
and swirling. All with the agility of an alley cat. It sounds like the intro to a comic about
Catwoman, but this is Angela Reininga’s story.
The 4-foot-11-inch woman has hair and personality to make up for her stature: fiery,
voluminous and flowing. Some think of Reininga as an accountant and some the owner
and teacher of Pole Velocity, a pole dance company she runs out of her home, but all will
say she is a woman with a playful spirit.
“Angela is probably the person who most surprises me with what makes her tick.” said co-
worker Theresa Zych. “Quiet country girl she is not.”
Reininga comes from a peaceful, conservative family in Evansville, Ind. who always
supported her dance habits in ballet, jazz and tap. But when Reininga turned to pole
dancing three years ago, she didn’t think they would understand. “I didn’t tell my family
that I was into pole until well after my business was up and going. In the end, they found
out from MySpace,” she said.
Her brother-in-law had seen a news report warning of the dangers of the internet. “For
some reason, he decided to look me up on MySpace,” said Reininga, who uses her
business name as her screen identity. Reininga does have her name attached to her
MySpace account, however, making a search easy.
“On Christmas Eve, we were sitting on the couch and all of a sudden he says ‘so, what’s
with this pole thing on MySpace? You should have just told us!’ “I was really startled”.
She started to describe the benefits of pole dancing, but her brother-in-law had already
done his homework. “We don’t care!” he told her. Reininga’s sister now has a pole of her
own and a five-year-old daughter who can scale her way to the top.
She’s still working on her mom though. “My mom knows it’s good, but still doesn’t quite
get it,” she said. Reininga says her mom doesn’t have any problems with her pole dancing,
but she doesn’t know much about the activity.
When Reininga first picked up pole dancing as an exercise, she was forced to learn from
videos that did little more than give the names of tricks and spins. But she was intent on
improving her upper body strength and learning a new skill. There just weren’t any studios
with people to coach her through the complicated movements, which is why she decided to
open Pole Velocity Dance and Fitness. But it was a slow start for her.
“I had a really tough time in the beginning,” she said “People didn’t quite know what it was
or why a woman would want to do it.”
At the time, the women who did take classes from her weren’t telling anybody about it. But
Reininga has grown from one bachelorette party a month to up to 16 classes a week with
numerous parties and private lessons thrown in. She attributes the rise in business
partially to pole dancing’s growing exposure in the general populace.
“She’s a survivor for sure,” said Zych “I envy her that she hasn’t let slow business times
get her down.”
A thing like a little recession isn’t going to be enough to stop Reininga, says Linda Stewart,
who, at 50, is Reininga’s oldest student. “She’s very friendly, enthusiastic and promotes a
fun atmosphere, she’s very supportive and encouraging.” said Stewart “I especially like
that she is always willing to take a picture of me when I’ve finally learned and can execute a
difficult [move].”
Reininga’s students attend Pole Velocity because of the studio space just as much as
because of the teacher.
“Since she teaches the classes out of her home, I don’t have to worry about creepy guys
looking at me while I practice,” said Ashley Downey-Easter, another student.
Reininga emptied out the living room of her small, one bedroom apartment in Ravenswood
to create an intimate, relaxing space. Gleaming, hardwood floors allow students to spin
around poles with ease while providing enough traction to prevent spills. Bright windows
lining one side of the room are covered with sheer, rusty fabric edged with beads that
rustle in the breeze. A wavy, Moroccan henna- lamp is placed in each corner, giving off just
a touch of romantic glow.
Opposite a row of mirrors, three poles reach between the floor and ceiling. Reininga
explained that she didn’t have to destroy her apartment to install these poles--they’re
completely portable and safe.
The poles are secured by screwing the metal adjuster to fit between the floor and the
ceiling, locking the pole into place. Her favorite feature of her poles? They’re flexible. By
rotating a tiny screw, she can turn the poles from static to spinning so her students can
“spin as long as they want” until they choose to stop.
Sure, the poles are obvious, but there’s something much more prominent and favored by
Reininga’s students: her shoe collection.
A wooden case full of what can only be deemed as “stripper stilettos” lines the hall. There
are 20 pairs in this case alone with a tower of shoe boxes leaning against it.
Another procession of lustrous platforms lies beneath the window. Other colorful pairs are
sprinkled throughout the room as decoration.
But Reininga insists there’s a reason for the shoes. “I am 4 feet 11 inches tall, but in my
platforms I am 5 feet 6 inches tall--I wear them so I can get more height and spin more.” she
said “Most shoes are vinyl, so they stick better to help you climb the pole.”
Reininga says many students take time to admire her stockpile of shoes in between
classes. Stewart remarked that Reininga reawakened her love of “sexy, pretty shoes.”
So, why does Reininga have so many?
“I love shoes and there are hundreds to choose from and so many different styles.” she
said “So why not?”
In the mean time, keep your eyes peeled for this pole kitten accountant--she may come
home as your next pole dancing champion one day.
March 28, 2009
Interview with Kim Doerner, Journalism at Medill Graduate School at Northwestern University
Interview with Kim Doerner, Journalism at Medill Graduate School at Northwestern University
Associated Press
November 5, 2009
International Pole Competition in Tokyo Japan
November 5, 2009
International Pole Competition in Tokyo Japan