Learning the steps to become a successful nightclub dancer

Abstract

This study focuses on nightclub dancers. This includes freestyle podium dancers, choreographed stage dancers and pole performers that are paid to provide entertainment in nightclubs. The aim of this thesis is to answer the following main research question: how do individuals learn to become successful nightclub dancers? This can be broken into two constituent research questions: 1) what skills and attributes do individuals require in order to become successful nightclub dancers and 2) how do nightclub dancers learn to be successful and professional in their occupation. These questions are addressed through the analysis of data collected through semi-structured interviews with nightclub dancers, nightclub managers, events entertainment managers and dance teachers. The data suggested that in order to be successful, nightclub dancers need to be proficient in three types of labour that comprise their work: physical dance labour, aesthetic labour and emotional labour. Drawing on theories of workplace learning, it is argued that nightclub dancers learn the various skills required for dance labour through a range of different types of pre-job and on-the-job, formal and non-formal learning. Their learning of aesthetic and emotional labour is mainly characterised by non-formal on-the-job learning from other dancers.

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