What Dancing Has Taught Me About Pinup Pageants
By Vivien Victory
“To dance is to be out of yourself. Larger, more beautiful, more powerful. This is power, it is glory on earth and it is yours for the taking.” – Agnes de Mille
You don’t have to be en pointe to be an on-point pinup. However, the art of dance can help pinup performers to shake up their poses and bring something new to the stage. Here’s 3 simple aspects of dance you can incorporate into your next shoot or stage time!
Levels
Levels refer to high, medium and low points on a stage. When we walk across a stage, it is usually using high space of the stage: using your arms to frame your face, to hold a prop high, to fluff your cute hair. Using medium and low spaces of the stage in poses and transitions creates engaging, unique routines when walking across the stage during a pinup pageant. Ideas to show this range include: lounging on the ground with your knees popped (see below) or sitting on a prop chair, suitcase or box.
(Photographer: Say Cheesecake Photography)
Lines
There’s more to pinup lines than cupping your face and pointing a toe. Drawing lines with your hands accentuates and draws attention to areas – for example, running a hand down your side, peeling off gloves or tracing stocking seams. Changing these up can be exciting and work to show off a great outfit you have put together, or indeed a prop you are displaying. Lines do not only accentuate, but they also work in posing in regards to the frames or lines we create with our bodies. Take a look at the great Gil Elvgren illustrations, for instance. A long outstretched leg, crossing ankles, or a hand behind the head with your arm in a upside V shape (see below) creates a picture that paints a thousand words.
(Photographer: King Maker Photography)
Face
You could have the most beautiful walk in the world, the most beautiful clothes…but if you don’t give ‘face’, it’s not much of a show. Giving face doesn’t mean being naturally beautiful – it means showing personality, light behind the eyes. Don’t be afraid to have fun, to open the opportunity for a not so flattering image to be taken. Don’t just stare into space. Make a real connection: pick one or two faces in a crowd to smile at, wink or raise an eyebrow. It can take a few photoshoots or shows to feel more comfortable, and less frozen – but don’t worry, soon you’ll be mugging like Lucille Ball!
The old adage is to dance like no one is watching – and with pinup, usually many people are really watching! Instead, move in pinup like you would a dance, and soon you’ll be as lively as a lindy hop.
Vivien Victory - Guest Blogger
xoxo
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