Alethea Austin

Alethea Austin is a U.S.-based pole dancer, instructor, and studio founder who brought a deliberately sensual vocabulary into competitions, teaching circuits, screen work, and independent live production. She took her first pole class in Los Angeles and emerged as a visible performer during pole dance's expansion into wider public view in the mid-2000s. Austin positions her practice around what she calls an "old-school" approach—one that joins sensual movement, athletic control, and musical performance.

Austin's most clearly documented competitive credential is winning the U.S. Pole Dance Championship in 2010. She also placed first runner-up in the USPDF Pro Division in 2012, according to contemporary industry reports. Beyond competition, she built her reputation through an extensive teaching circuit, traveling to more than 400 gyms and studios and teaching thousands of students across workshops and intensives. Her work also extended to film and music video: she appeared as a dancer in the 2012 film *Rock of Ages*, and her biography credits appearances in music videos for Mötley Crüe and Cage the Elephant.

In 2013, Austin relocated to Nashville and opened The Chrome Bar, a boutique pole studio built around what the venue describes as intuitive, feminine pole technique. The studio marked a shift from constant touring toward a durable teaching base and community infrastructure. It became the anchor for her broader work in dance production and direction. Austin later expanded into producing and directing projects including *Live Dancing Girls* and *Miss Pole Dance America*, roles she discussed in a 2016 WatchDanceTV interview and revisited in a 2021 *Aerial Hour* interview that traced her path through competition, instructional DVDs, touring, and studio ownership. She continues to work selectively, developing online training alongside her studio practice.