Celeste Talbott-Rivera got it from her mama.
The 31-year-old entrepreneur and owner of new business Ethaerial Studio was pressured into trying pole fitness by her mother.
“She just wouldn’t stop talking about it,” Talbott-Rivera said. “I could see how passionate she was.”
Despite dismissing pole fitness as something that wasn’t for her, the hot Pilates instructor at Juice Box Yoga finally told her mom she would try it once, if she would just stop talking about it.
Talbott-Rivera did, and the rest is history.
“I was so humbled so quick,” Talbott-Rivera said. “What the heck is this? This is crazy!” she remembered thinking to herself, watching the class instructor move gracefully on the pole. “I was mesmerized… and that is the reason why I kept coming back.”
Her fascination quickly gave way to obsession as Talbott-Rivera was taking pole fitness classes three times a day, five days a week. The progression she felt was both “quick” and “addicting.” So, when her previous pole studio closed down, she felt displaced not just from a new hobby but from a community.
It was again Talbott-Rivera’s mother who pushed her into opening her own studio. As the owner of Celeste Creative, a company that umbrellas her creative endeavors, including visual artistry, creative directing, fashion and costume design, transformative makeup, styling/look-book creation, content creation, oil painting, illustrations and more, her mother knew she could find success with a new outlet.
Combining her talents, she opened Ethaerial to be more than a pole fitness studio. Located in Midtown, the studio is attracting a lot of first timers with limited or even zero dance background, and her classes are tailored to the skills of her clientele. Ethaerial offers mostly beginner level classes as well as some intro to intermediate and intermediate classes, although she says most offerings are accessible to multi-level students.
But it’s not just a fitness studio.
Ethaerial also doubles as a venue, one routinely used for dance/pole fitness audition videos—she recently had someone rent out the studio to record an audition tape for a Snoop Dogg tour, which she nabbed—private parties, private classes and events. Half of the poles are mobile and can be taken down to create space; the other poles are permanent but can be decorated around.
Of course, anyone hosting an event in the space can also hire a pole dancer or instructor.
One characteristic of her studio that stands out is the 13.3-foot poles she uses. The high ceilings of the space allow her to accommodate those who do pole competitively and need to practice on regulation equipment. “It’s super, super tall poles so you have a lot of room to do different tricks,” she explained.
Talbott-Rivera also put a lot of effort into the aesthetics of her space, which shouldn’t surprise those who are familiar with her Celeste Creative work. She describes it as light and airy, and it plays well into the artsy crowd that lives in and frequents Midtown.
While many have their preconceived notions about who is taking pole fitness, Talbott-Rivera said many may be surprised to see the diversity in her studio. There are people of all colors and sizes teaching and taking classes, an aspect that is important to the black female business owner. But there are also men coming in, too. “A lot of manly men coming in,” she laughed.
Some of the male clientele are brought to Ethaerial by Talbott-Rivera’s brother, an MMA fighter who brings in some of his colleagues to try the class. Talbott-Rivera also sees quite a few couples coming in for date night, and specifically first dates, looking to try a new activity.
The poles are even nickel-free to accommodate people with allergies.
“It can be for anyone, literally anyone,” she said, adding that strength and dance skills both come through practice and are not a prerequisite to signing up.
“It’s not just a pole studio, it’s a pole community for people to feel good about themselves, feel empowered, get a good workout, and meet/make wonderful new friends,” she gushed. “Representation is also important to me, so I want students to be able to look at what others are doing in the studio and also see themselves being able to do it, too.”
Ethaerial offers classes Tuesday through Saturday. Talbott-Rivera hosted a grand opening party in March, but classes officially started on April 4.
Learn more @ethaerialstudio or www.ethaerialstudio.com.
