Selenite Studio Transforms Pole Dancing Into a Space for Healing and Self-Love

“Pole is for everybody,” says Nico Paradis, owner of Selenite Studio. “I mean, that’s what we say always, and we really live by that at Selenite. It’s not a body type rate. You’re not trying to lose your bloat, or you don’t have to be a certain weight to get on a pole. And so we don’t talk about diet, weight loss. We don’t talk about bodies in general. We don’t comment on one another’s bodies.”

For Paradis, the creation of Selenite Studio is an inclusive space for those who want to explore creating and developing skills in pole dancing, aerial silks, lyra, burlesque, and yoga. Paradis has always had a passion for dance, as she danced throughout high school and was a member of the school’s dance team. The idea of trying pole dancing began when she was 18 after seeing a video on social media.

“My self-esteem was very low,” says Paradis. “And I had a friend from high school who was posting videos on Facebook, pole videos that she was taking at Tease, which is like the first pole studio in Denver. And she just looked so beautiful and confident and free. And so I reached out to her and asked her where the classes are, how I (can) take the class. And I started going to Tease. I was a nanny at the time and did not have a bunch of money to put towards a membership, but did it anyways. I was going to 12 classes a week.”

Taking classes at Tease became beneficial when she became a stripper from 2021 to 2023 while growing Selenite and opening its Wheat Ridge location.

She continues to explain that despite her enjoyment of learning pole dancing, she had to quit due to her boyfriend’s objection.

“And then my boyfriend found out about it, (and he) was very upset, and I had to stop,” says Paraadis. “But at that time, I mean, I was young and in good shape. And so I was moving up very quickly. So I learned a lot of skills. Those skills really came in handy. ”

Unfortunately, the controlling behavior around her line of work wasn’t the only problem in their relationship. “He was abusive. He was very abusive. I got pregnant with our daughter, had our daughter. He ended up going to prison and left me with our mortgage and all these things. So I then turned to sex work. I mean, it was definitely out of necessity, but I’m so thankful to Tease because I had these skills to bring to the club.”

After having her youngest son, she felt the urge to start taking classes again and soon realized she could open her own studio.

“I’m in a very safe relationship and wanted to get back into it in a hobby-based way and started taking classes at 3sixT (Studio 3sixT),” says Paradis. “And I was laying on the floor during a cool-down, looking up at the ceiling, thinking about how maybe I could open a studio. Then that night I had a dream about having a pole studio.”

She opened her studio with support from her husband during one of the most turbulent times to start a business—the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Now, because we were right in the middle of COVID,” says Paradis. “It’s a crazy time to get started, but leases were aplenty … I had no business experience, not a great deal of capital, that’s for sure. Not good credit, nothing. I had nothing going for me except that I wanted to do this and create this space where people could increase their confidence and find community.”

Selenite Studio offers classes seven days a week, all of which are gender-inclusive, reflecting her passion for co-ed classes and fostering connections within the LGBTQ+ community.

“So the very first thing that I wanted to do to differentiate ourselves was to make every class an all genders included class,” says Paradis. “We ask pronouns at the beginning of every class. We were the first in town to have every class be gender-inclusive. And now that’s the norm, which is really cool. So that’s awesome.”

Paradis takes joy in watching new students evolve from feeling nervous about their first class and uncertain about what to wear to gaining confidence and appreciating parts of themselves they never saw as strengths, allowing them to push their bodies beyond what they once thought possible.

“I like to put that as a side effect of pole,” says Paradis. “Eventually, your body will start to change, just like with pilates or anything. It’s not the focus. Usually, in the three-month period when I see this happening, nothing’s really outwardly changed with their body. What’s changed is that they like their body.

“And the reason I think students or dancers start to like their body is truly because pole is shocking. You start with a few spins and you’re blown away that you can hold up your body weight—maybe pull ups were out of reach for you, right? Then you go upside down, and you’re like, holy shit—My thunder thighs that I’ve always been self-conscious of serve a purpose. They’re what’s holding me up on this pole so I can do this incredible layback move, and I can watch that video back, I can feel good about how beautiful I look spinning around upside down on this pole, and it’s thanks to these thighs.”

Along with the physical changes, pole dancing reveals the dancer’s open and raw emotions.

“Pole is a vulnerable activity,” says Paradis. “First of all, you’re wearing less clothes than you normally would in a lot of activities. You’re forced to look in the mirror the whole time. I mean, there’s giant mirrors everywhere. You’re with all these other people that are at various stages of their healing journey or their de-conditioning journey into loving themselves. So there’s a lot of vulnerability that comes up. A lot of crying, but what that vulnerability does is bring people closer together in a quicker amount of time … just like in a relationship.”

Recently, classes offering pole dancing and pole fitness have exploded within the Denver area, with multiple studios appearing in the Denver metro area. While both may seem similar on the surface, there are distinct differences that separate the two.

“So I mean, with pole fitness, a lot of pole fitness dancers will do a move and then another move. Maybe they’ll even like combine the move, but there’s not floorwork. And floorwork is when you’re either on the floor dancing, or, like, laying down or on your hands and knees or whatever, or even just like touch, like they’re taking the sex out of pole. Pole—I mean, it’s a pole. Like, it’s a sexual innuendo in itself, right? So, to take the sex out of pole, to make it a fitness focus, take some magic out of pole.”

Despite expanding to two locations, Littleton and Wheat Ridge, Paradis remains grounded and uses her experience with her first instructor, Roxy Star, to fuel Paradis’ devotion to pole dancing and shape the way she guides her students on their own journeys of self-discovery.

“One of the first classes I took with her, she said, ‘This is your time to be sexy for nobody but yourself,’” says Paradis. “And when do we get that opportunity in society? And that really stuck with me as somebody who is so used to performing always. Being able to have this time to just be here and appreciate my body for myself was life-changing. So I do take that phrase and I bring it into every intro class that I teach because pole can be whatever you want it to be …We love to explore the sensuality aspect of pole and celebrate that.”

Selenite Studio recently presented its Halloween Showcase on October 11 at Gnarly’s Theater in Golden.

Photo courtesy of Selenite Studios