We are sitting down to talk to our new instructors for PoleCon 2026! Learn more…
Interview with New PoleCon Instructor: Monica Maxine
We are sitting down to talk to our new instructors for PoleCon: West 2026! Learn more about them and then click here to purchase their workshop
1. We’re so excited to have you teach at PoleCon: West this year! Can you tell us a little more about what you’re teaching?
I’ll be teaching Feral — a primal fusion of yoga, floorwork, sensual movement, and twerk-inspired embodiment. The class is rooted in somatics and nervous system release just as much as choreography or fitness. Expect grounded movement, fluid transitions, deep core engagement, and an atmosphere that encourages students to reconnect with instinct, confidence, and unapologetic self-expression. It’s sweaty, empowering, a little wild, and designed to help people drop out of their heads and back into their bodies.
2. Is there something that defines your style of teaching or your content that is unique to you?
What makes my teaching style unique is the blend of shadow work, somatic awareness, and raw embodiment. I’m less interested in perfection and more interested in authenticity and sensation. Feral isn’t about performing femininity — it’s about exploring it in all its forms: powerful, messy, sensual, primal, playful, emotional. My background in yoga heavily influences how I cue movement and breath, so even the more intense or expressive moments still feel intentional, grounded, and accessible.
3. What is the one thing you want your students to leave with after taking your workshop?
More than anything, I want students to leave feeling more connected to themselves. Stronger in their body. Less afraid to take up space. I want people to walk out remembering that movement can be healing, freeing, and deeply personal — not just something to “get right.” If they leave feeling empowered, liberated, or even just a little more alive in their body, then I’ve done what I came to do.
4. What are you most excited about for PoleCon: West 2026?
I’m most excited about being surrounded by such an incredible community of artists, movers, and teachers. PoleCon always seems like this electric mix of creativity, expression, empowerment, and support. I’m especially excited to bring Feral into that space and connect with people who are curious about blending sensual movement, yoga, and embodiment work in a different way.
5. Anything else you want to share with PoleCon: West attendees?
Come as you are. You do not need to be the “best,” the most flexible, the most confident, or the most experienced person in the room to belong in this workshop. Feral is about exploration, expression, and reconnecting with the parts of yourself you may have quieted or hidden. I hope attendees leave feeling inspired to move in ways that feel true to them — both inside the workshop and outside of it.
Colleen Jolly is an entrepreneur and a pole dance enthusiast. She has been poling for 15 years, is the CEO of PoleCon and the Executive Director of the IPIA. She teaches pole, lyra, floorwork, and mobility online and in-person in the DC metro area. She has been active in leadership roles in several international businesses over the past two decades and is also an award-winning pole dancer, artist, writer, and speaker. She is certified in several movement modalities and wrote the book "Mobility for Pole" to help pole dancers move better.
Latest posts by Colleen (see all)
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