If you have ever gone to a major music festival or certain clubs around the world, you’ve seen them. The men and women who make up the gogo dancing and performance art teams are a wonderful addition to any event, where they do their best to bring a sense of fantasy and awe through visual entertainment. We received feedback from dancers, flow artists, and special acts from around the country, and we narrowed it down to 10 things that they all wish you knew.
1. Do. Not. Touch.
If we are working and have a close distance to the crowd around us, that does not mean that you can touch. It’s creepy, it’s rude, we’re probably really sweaty, and we can and will tell security that you are crossing lines. If you have gone somewhere in the past where the dancers were okay with being touched, that doesn’t mean it’s okay this time. If you are giving us a tip, either hand it to us personally or ask before attempting to shove cash in any part of the costume. Be polite, be smart, keep your hands to yourself.
2. This is a very costly job, but it’s really worth it.
Being a dancer or a performer is very expensive, in more ways than one. It costs a lot of money to keep shoes, outfits, wigs, and performance props in good shape. LED hula hoops may run upwards of a couple hundred dollars, and it could take as little as one error to break it. It costs us hours of time to work out, practice our moves, time at home where we could be with our friends and family, or even time at shows in the crowd with the rest of our group. One of the best perks of the cost though? We get to keep a lot of these gorgeous outfits, our shoe collections are fierce, and we get to travel all over to do what we love!
3. Gogo dancing and performing is honestly hard work.
Being in a crowd and dancing the night away truly isn’t the same as standing on a stage gogo dancing or performing for work. We are held to strict time limits, and if we get tired fifteen minutes into a set we likely have another fifteen or thirty minutes to go. Our breaks are short, and we cherish them, so if we go off to the side or isolate ourselves in-between sets please let us rest. Many nights we are required to be dancing for three hours, and we may only get 45 minutes to an hour break total, we need to breathe.
4. Haha, no. We’re not strippers.
No, gogo dancers and performers are not strippers. No, you are not clever, nor are you the first person in the world to ask what you may think is a humorous question. We work in entirely different environments, for different crowds, and for different purposes. No shame on strippers though, work your hustle!
5. It really isn’t cute when you try to copy us move for move.
We see you. We see the girl who has had too many shots trying to keep up with us and copy what we do. We also see the girl who is catty and mimicking us by doing our moves with an obvious edge of sarcasm. It is amazing how many people in the crowd do not realize that the lights are on them, and that we have a perfect view of everything going on in the crowd. We are people, we are on stage doing what we love, and all we ask is that you understand that this is a job. We have emotions and it is a awful feeling watching someone make fun of you for hours on end.
On the other hand, if we see someone out there really enjoying what we do, dancing along, or even singing to us from a distance, it makes our night! It is a wonderful feeling to make eye contact with an audience member who is loving our routine. We will focus all of our attention that person, dance to them, and show them love. But really, try and at least be a decent human being and attempt to enjoy the art that we do.
6. Most of the time, we are very, very uncomfortable.
What the audience sees: our outfits look awesome, our shoes are sexy, and our hair is flawless.
What is really happening: The bottoms run small and ride up, a constant fear of a nip slip, the heels make all of our toes go numb, and we have about 30 bobby pins stabbing our scalp.
For anyone who has ever been in dance or theater, or really any art or sport that requires dressing up, you know how much it hurts to get stage ready. It takes between thirty minutes or an hour to get ready, each dancer has probably inhaled a half can of hairspray through secondhand spraying. Now imagine being in pain in front of hundreds or thousands of people, for a long period of time, and having to not let any discomfort show. Don’t get us wrong, we love what we do! But it lives up to the old saying – beauty is pain.
7. Thank you, but please don’t take it personally if we don’t accept drinks.
Honestly this topic is a tough one. Many dancing companies have rules that keep their dancers from drinking while on the job, and some companies will only allow one or two. The sentiment is sweet and we really appreciate the gesture, but for the most part please remember that we’re at work. This is like any other job, and we can’t be seen drinking or participating in any other “activities” that may be going on in the crowd. Dancers and performers are held to high expectations while working and though you likely have the best interest in mind, please, don’t.
8. Absolutely not, you cannot touch my hula hoop.
You cannot touch it, or play with it, or give it a spin. These hula hoops, flow staffs, poi, fans and literally anything else are the tools of our trade. If they break, it could severely impact our job, as we will have to wait on repairs or go out of pocket to buy a new one. It isn’t worth the risk, and if it means nothing against you personally, but we are better off not risking our paychecks on letting you mess around with our equipment. We would be absolutely down to teach you on an off day with practice gear, but we really can’t risk our important investments.
9. The tips we make can be insane!
A typical night in a nice club won’t bring in the best tips from club attendees, but some nights the money just flows. Private parties and little venues tend to feel the most generous, and that can be the biggest inspiration to put our all into our performances that night. If you like what you see, feel free to show us some love!
10. There are so many small perks that make this job worth all of the complaints.
While we may have things that we complain about, at the end of the night we get paid good money to do what we love and hopefully help a crowd enjoy their night just a little bit more. Gogo dancers and performance artists get to travel all over the world, meet famous musicians and artists, and see thousands of people all gather to enjoy the music that brings us all together. Like any job, there are a few things that we may not enjoy, but regardless, this is what we love.
Music: Hard Dance | Drum and Bass | Future Bass
Hobbies: Cosplay | Travel | Music Festivals | Sewing | Dancing | Contact Staff
Likes: Fried Chicken | Samurai | Video Games | Sleep
Dislikes: Beans | Bugs | Traffic | Complacency
