Today we’d like to introduce you to Red Rider
Hi Red, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
Villainy as a concept began with our deep desire to assist folx, of all walks of life, in realizing their full bad@ss potential and shedding any societal restraints on what power looks and feels like. We do this through the medium of alternative dance, while living the motto that it feels good to be “bad”.
Villainy as a space started as a small studio in Uptown during the pandemic, designed to safely offer one-on-one lessons in pole dance, chair dance, yoga, etc. As we continued to share our passion for dance as a vehicle for self expression and fitness, our community quickly outgrew our Uptown location.
We moved to our Cedar Ave location in 2022 and have continued to live our “bad” lives out loud by embracing our sensuality, focusing mentally on body positivity and physically on fitness improvement. We have expanded our Villainous offerings to include 4 week sessions, showcase series and workshops in pole dance, chair dance, burlesque, lyra, static trapeze, heels dance, and other forms of alternative dance. We have an amazing syndicate of instructors and student members who participate in: classes, performance opportunities, student photo shoots, open house events, and private parties.
We couldn’t be more proud of our bad@ss dancers who have all learned to embrace their Villain Era and unleash their power!
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
As is standard in our industry there have been some misconceptions about the type of classes that we offer. Alternative dance that includes components of sensuality have a longer journey to community acceptance but we have found South Minneapolis to be a vibrant, welcoming, and artistic neighborhood to be a part of. By and large we have been able to grow at a reasonable pace and have been buoyed by the support of our fellow Villains through any difficulties.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
Our instructors are not only knowledgeable and experienced in their teaching practices, they are also working performers. This means we tend to attract students who also grow to love performing, though it is not a requirement to be a student. We have purposefully intimate class sizes so that we can give each student the attention and direction to become the best Villain they can. We are also huge nerds and love science fiction and fantasy. We take technique and safety seriously, but we love to infuse comedy into our classes and routines. You’ll hear Villains laughing and cheering each other throughout the studio!
We’d love to hear about how you think about risk taking?
Being an arts focused business to begin with is a risk. The margins are small in terms of money but the gains are so generous in terms of the heart. We use a healthy mix of measured risks and imagination, in terms of business reach and scope, that are necessary to continue to grow. We have tried several dance classes that aren’t necessarily offered in other places. Sometimes they work out and some times they don’t. We are careful to not overextend, but one has to take a leap of faith to see real potential realized. This is an element we pass on to our students who are taking a risk by stepping outside of their comfort zones to develop their own Villainous masterplans.
Pricing:
- Drop in Classes $25
- Beginner Series $79
- Series Classes $149
- Showcase Classes $199
- Memberships start at $129
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.villainyhq.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/villainyhq/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/VillainyHQ
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@VillainyHQ
