n this video, we'll be talking about what it takes to be a Chairlesque dancer with #NoreenEfondo, the founder of Chairlesque. We'll cover how Chairlesque started, how much it costs to learn Chairlesque, and how much does a Chairlesque instructor earn!
If you're interested in learning more about this fascinating career path, be sure to watch this video!
VIDEO PRODUCED BY: Cass Lazaro
VIDEO SHOT BY: Yanie Cruz, Jez Villapando
VIDEO EDITED BY: Pat Geminiano
If you're interested in learning more about this fascinating career path, be sure to watch this video!
VIDEO PRODUCED BY: Cass Lazaro
VIDEO SHOT BY: Yanie Cruz, Jez Villapando
VIDEO EDITED BY: Pat Geminiano
Category
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CreativityTranscript
00:00 Hey everyone, are you here for chairless? Come in, welcome to my class.
00:06 By the way, my name is Noreen, a chairless dance instructor and you're watching Cosmos, Women at Work.
00:19 Hi Noreen, how did you start ChairDesk?
00:25 Very interesting question. So, I'm actually a certified pole dance instructor since 2014.
00:31 I love to take classes everywhere, any style. I ended up with this specific choreographer.
00:38 She does heels but that time when I was in her class, she did a chair dance.
00:44 I said, "Hey, there's like a light bulb thing." I said, "Maybe this can be done here in the Philippines."
00:50 That's when I started to experiment on things, on chairs specifically and everything comes into place.
00:57 What were you doing prior to chairless?
01:07 Before chairless or before doing anything about teaching, I was actually a marketing assistant and then go to marketing supervisor.
01:18 Technically, I was a marketing officer in automotive industry. So, it's super far.
01:24 How will you describe chairless?
01:31 That's a good question. Chairless is super close to my heart.
01:36 It can be a class, a type of class which is FEM and it can also be a dance community.
01:45 Because we're not just close in the dance studio. We even help each other outside the dance studio.
01:52 So, it's a dance class and also a community.
01:55 What does chairless mean to you and why do you love it?
02:01 Chairless for me is a healing safe space.
02:05 Maybe my students thought it's just for them to heal but it's actually for me as well to heal.
02:13 What do you think of chairless?
02:15 The first time I heard about chairless, I thought it's dancing with chairs.
02:22 But 7 months into the community, it's not just about dancing but it's about the community that Coach Noreen have built for women of all age, sizes, nationality or religion.
02:39 We can be our authentic selves. So, for me, chairless is not just about dancing with chairs but also being with my sisters.
02:50 How much do you usually make as a chairless instructor?
02:56 That's a very interesting question.
02:58 Because in the Philippines, when you say a dance instructor, it's not that high.
03:07 But if I compare it with my automotive industry, office work, it's very high compared to what I earned before.
03:17 So, just to give you approximately, give and take, more or less, it's Php 100,000 for 2 weeks.
03:24 So, how I come up with that?
03:26 With those 2 weeks, let's say I have 15 classes.
03:33 Those 15 classes or 20 classes, it really depends.
03:37 The Php 800 is for the open class.
03:40 Sometimes, almost actually, it's always full.
03:44 So, it's 15 students times Php 800.
03:47 And then, I also have the private classes which is Php 3,000 per class.
03:52 And then, just to sum it up, it's somehow Php 100,000 for 2 weeks.
03:59 What is your advice for those who want to try chairless?
04:03 For those who want to try to join chairless, just do it.
04:07 I mean, we all start as a beginner.
04:10 And you won't discover what you can do in life if you're not going to start with anything.
04:16 What made you enroll in this class?
04:18 I enrolled in this class for me to express myself more and to see the beauty of life.
04:26 Because there's a lot of things for you to experience in life as a whole.
04:31 The first video I saw about chairless was being danced by one of the dancers in Mocha Girls, I think, in TikTok.
04:41 And then, I researched and found out about chairless.
04:44 So, initially, I just wanted to learn one song.
04:47 And then, afterwards, I got into taking the classes because as an ADHD woman,
04:55 it's really hard for me to find a hobby that I can really stick with chairless.
05:00 Because not only am I enjoying Coach Noreen's style of teaching,
05:05 but also the people that I dance with, the friends that I make here.
05:09 So, it makes me stay and as well as being a mom of four,
05:13 it helps bring back the confidence that I thought that as a mom, I would never feel sexy again.
05:22 But in this class, I found out that regardless of how many kids that you have,
05:27 you can still be sexy in your own skin.
05:30 What is the biggest misconception about chairless and this type of dancing that you'd like to correct?
05:38 Same with pole. When I started with it, it was already said that it's for strippers.
05:42 And same with this because it's like everything is sensual and sexy.
05:46 But it's actually not just for strippers or sex workers.
05:50 Well, we respect them as well because that's their work.
05:52 But this one, this is for us, for people who just like to enjoy life,
05:56 to enjoy what we can still do outside of everything that we do.
06:00 So yes, it's not just for sensuality. It's also actually just for healing yourself.
06:05 And let's just dance, let's just enjoy.
06:08 Tell us about your milestones in the field.
06:13 Milestones. I think there are a lot.
06:17 Okay, so we can start with, before I had only like six students.
06:21 Now, maybe 15, 20, 50. I don't know anymore. I can't count it anymore.
06:26 So that's the first milestone that I can tell.
06:29 And then the second one is, I went to other countries to also teach chairless.
06:34 I went to Taiwan, to Japan, to Thailand, to Singapore, and even to Korea.
06:43 And the third one is, I have my apprentices now who helps me with the mission to empower everyone.
06:49 So I'm very thankful for them. And they will eventually be the coaches for chairless.
06:55 And lastly, the milestone that still, you know, not everyone knows about it,
07:00 is we're going to have our own dance studio. It's going to be on January 2024.
07:05 So it's actually a surprise for them, but since they might already know for now.
07:10 So those are the milestones as of the moment.
07:13 Do you conduct classes? What are the schedules in place, if ever?
07:20 Yes, we do have classes. I just started with weekly classes.
07:25 That's every weekend, Saturday, Sunday.
07:27 So if you want to check out our classes, go to our chairless page,
07:31 on Facebook and Instagram as well.
07:34 How would you describe Noreen as an instructor?
07:39 Noreen as an instructor is a super mega mega supportive instructor.
07:45 Like, she will push you to your utmost limits and for you to think outside the box
07:50 and eventually surpass your limits.
07:53 Thank you for joining me here. If you want to know more about chairless,
07:56 you can follow me on my socials and subscribe to my YouTube channel.
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