Better Than Coffee: Jenyne Butterfly
[via Dusty, thanks!]
Jenyne Butterfly is a bee-YOOO-tee-ful aerialist and pole dancer who lives and performs in Las Vegas, and teaches workshops internationally. A consummate show-woman, she’s won a wide variety of pole-dancing titles and championships over the past several years.
Plenty of clips of her live performances are up on the web, all glitter and stilettos and sass. But this is the clip that I love best– Jenyne in casual rehearsal duds, doing a master class demo somewhere in Scotland. She’s especially relaxed and strong here, the picture of effortless grace… even when she’s melting into peals of laughter because the pole has started spinning too fast! It’s a testament to how sometimes, a performer’s more candid, unguarded moments can be the most mesmerizing. Her joy is contagious.
February 22nd, 2010 at 7:32 am
If you haven’t already, I suggest you check out the videos of Felix Cane.
February 22nd, 2010 at 11:24 am
it’s impressive and she’s obviously very good at her job but what a sudden drop in quality for the coilhouse blog…this surely isn’t the love letter to alternative culture.
February 22nd, 2010 at 12:06 pm
Gravity seems to fall away at quite a few points in that video…”Wow” feels like an understatement but…Wow nonetheless. Can’t say I’ve seen anything quite like that.
February 22nd, 2010 at 12:43 pm
This was SO entirely beautiful and feminine! Loved it! Sign me up. WOOT!
February 22nd, 2010 at 2:14 pm
“what a sudden drop in quality for the coilhouse blog…this surely isn’t the love letter to alternative culture.”
Why do you say that, Drtenge? Because it’s not a strain of alt that personally appeals to you? Not “edgy” enough for ya?
February 22nd, 2010 at 3:26 pm
Jeebus, watching stuff like that always makes me want to start doing core work and climb the side of buildings. So much fun. She’s stunning and ridiculously graceful and strong. I think I’m gonna go do crunches now.
February 22nd, 2010 at 3:48 pm
Personally I’m thrilled to see a pole post on Coilhouse! And Jenyne…..man….I’d give my left kidney for half of her flexibility and body control… Hadn’t seen this clip before….Thanks Mer!
February 22nd, 2010 at 4:12 pm
To me, a person who has never been able to do a single pull up, this level of physical power and grace is incredibly inspiring. She looks like Catwoman up there! More push-ups now.
February 23rd, 2010 at 6:25 pm
Great post. Simply beautiful.
February 23rd, 2010 at 10:51 pm
thinking of the level of content in the magazine and the last few weeks of content posted here in the blog (which was ranging from strong to moving to funny to interesting especially the last few weeks), i assumed as an audience member that pole dancing in such a mainstream light wouldn’t be ‘edgy'(?) enough for coilhouse
February 23rd, 2010 at 11:34 pm
Posting this clip has nothing to do with mainstream versus edgy. It has everything to do with sharing something that, to me, conveys a certain spirit of joy that’s at the heart of Coilhouse and why I’m part of it.
The joy of being creative. The joy of personal artistic expression. The joy of being in the moment as performer, blissed out and elevated after countless years of devotion to a craft. Jenyne might not be your cuppa, but then…
Art isn’t always about being edgy. Art is about personal, creative expression. So it makes me flinch that you’d suggest there’s something low or debasing to this forum about me sharing a pole-dancer’s small, sweet moment of grace.
I’d also like to invite you to read our Mission Statement (the same one that’s been up since this thing started in 2007):
“COILHOUSE is a love letter to alternative culture, written in an era when alternative culture no longer exists. And because it no longer exists, we take from yesterday and tomorrow, from the mainstream and from the underground, to construct our own version… to create an alternative culture that we would like to live in, as opposed to the one that’s being sold or handed down to us.”
February 24th, 2010 at 12:39 am
i don’t think i was implying that there was anything wrong or low about this video (in fact i stated the opposite in the very, very first sentence), but when it comes down to editing, the audience you created with the manifesto (which is a guideline of course) and quality of the themes you handle here on coilhouse..it sticks out, even among more playful posts (and i’m saying this as an enthusiast and faithful reader of the blog, nothing else).
however, i’m a little surprised to see this performer talked about as if she were a martyr for art (‘moment of grace’) and surely the term ‘edgy’ ceased to have any association to any artistic expression unless you count michael kors’s judgment on fabric choice.
but that aside…if you don’t see anything to my point, discard what has been said before as as i remain unchanged in my enthusiasm.
February 24th, 2010 at 1:16 am
I see your point, yeah. But again, I think it’s a matter of taste– a rather arbitrary one at that! And I’m relieved that at least a few of our readers seem to disagree with you.
The remark “what a sudden drop in quality for the coilhouse blog…this surely isn’t the love letter to alternative culture” definitely implies a lowering or debasement of quality to the forum. Whether either of us find the video itself “wrong or low” is irrelevant.
I’m pretty sure we have a language barrier to contend with, here. Maybe something’s getting lost in translation? Hopefully you have no idea you’re coming off as a bit of a dick. You are.
February 24th, 2010 at 1:21 am
Sidenote for the rest of our readers: I apologize for indulging in this pointless bickering.
Normally, I’d shrug off an Edgier Than Thou scolding, but man, it’s been a horrible week. Getting pooped on for a freakin’ Better Than Coffee post is the straw that broke my back.
February 24th, 2010 at 1:44 am
i think the assumption that there is a language barrier and that that makes it okay to talk as if it’s over my head by topping it off with name calling is not a matter of taste..it’s a failure to place criticism as something objective and possibly constructive.
there was also an option of looking through what negative impression you have and see that my criticism was genuine and not an ‘attack’ on the material posted.
February 24th, 2010 at 2:42 am
I made an educated guess based on your livejournal status, which states that you’re in the Nederlands. Am I wrong? Is English your first language? I’d be genuinely surprised if it was, because this whole exchange has given me the distinct impression that a lot’s being lost in translation! Regardless of intent, your initial comment was quite harsh. Whether you mean to or not, you keep twisting my words, and seem to be misinterpreting their meaning at times.
More linguistical noodles: I didn’t say you attacked me or the material. I said you scolded me. Which you did, quite plainly. Can you see how telling an (incidentally exhausted, overworked, financially strapped) editor that they’ve suddenly and drastically lowered the standard of their own blog might elicit a grumpy response?
And again with the word-twisting… I said you’re coming off as a bit of a dick, not that you actually are one. A small but crucial difference in semantics.
Another option you failed to mention: I could have completely ignored you. (I probably should have, but as previously mentioned, I’m feeling pretty worn out from 24-7 work on various aspects of the magazine.) But I live here. Coilhouse is my home. It hurts my feelings when welcome guests step into it for a minute just to tell me –in a blunt, discourteous manner– that I have poor taste. Figuratively, it’s hitting me where I live.
I hope, in all earnestness, that you can understand where I’m coming from. Maybe it will help one or both of us avoid hurt feelings at some future time.
February 24th, 2010 at 9:33 am
Oh Hai, thought I’d pass on a lit’l Flickr set that strikes me as similar to the notion of fabulous creatives and performers relaxed in their element, both onstage and off.
Please take a moment to peruse the “Backstage” photos by the famous neo-burlesque performer Jo “Boobs” Weldon:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/joweldon/sets/1362073/
I just love the sass and fun of so many sexy gals (and guys) playing backstage in preparation for doing the thing they love for an adoring crowd in anticipation.
It puts a lit’l tear in me eye when a person’s being and soul is expansive in creation and love for their craft. That’s what I take from the Coilhouse manifesto: tracking the beating heart and movement of alternative artistry and love of creation.
February 24th, 2010 at 9:54 am
Hmm, one man’s “drop in quality” is another man’s “widening the focus” regarding this lovely loveletter to alternative culture.
Surely we can all agree that Coilhouse has room for featuring the dark aspects of alt. culture as well as its lighter side? (For example, the post on the Tokyo Cat Hotel proved very popular…nice to see something about Japan that wasn’t about tentacles or paedophilia or cosplay.)
February 24th, 2010 at 10:43 am
@Meredith – Well handled my dear, don’t you just hate those “you said..”, “No, actually I said…” kind of arguments?
Can I just add that I applaud your taste immensely, this blog is among my top 5 favourites on the web.
February 24th, 2010 at 4:30 pm
Speaking as a Coilhouse fan who sometimes does this sort of thing to pay the bills, I’d like you to know that I appreciated the video.
…I only wish I could pull of even half of those moves without splitting my skull.
February 24th, 2010 at 11:14 pm
Bickering aside, her grace, strength and absolute body control is completely and mezmerizingly inspirational to me. I envy the ability to lie in that line between a fit body (going by a common notion I come across from some people that more muscular bodies are not as attractive – on women that is, but of course I disagree) while being absolutely and beautifully commanding at the same time. And after all, inspiration is one of the main goals of this whole operation on Coilhouse. I will say no more on that however, the point has been made rather eloquently by our dear Mer already :)
February 27th, 2010 at 2:46 am
i read that someone wept at the sight of a stripper’s smile so i decided a reply would be absolutely ridiculous, but then on the very same day i was presented with this:
http://perezhilton.com/2010-02-25-pole-dancing-at-the-olympics
and then this:
http://i45.tinypic.com/33p9hg8.jpg
February 27th, 2010 at 4:01 pm
*yawn*
December 3rd, 2011 at 12:05 pm
love the post. JB is a true talent and seeing her here on your classy blog makes me happy. Thank you.
December 3rd, 2011 at 12:08 pm
…also drtenge clearly does not understand the difference between a pole dancer and a stripper – and there is one hell of a big difference.