Archive for October, 2015

• Episode 15 – Philo Hagen: Hooping.org, Blogging and Modern Hooping Origins

  Date: 2015.10.12 | Category: PODCAST! | Response: 0

  Love this man!

  I snagged Philo at Hoopcamp this year for a chat and I’m still giddy about it. There is a lot of history in this conversation.

  

  Rainy Day at Hoopcamp

  Last year at Hoopcamp we had a little early morning bonding because he had been rained out of his tent and I needed coffee. We sat on the front porch of the dining hall in the rain and just talked. I definitely felt a bit like a fan girl around him. And why not?! But he is warm and sweet and funny as hell. My favorite MC hands down!

  He was the very first hooper I met while walking toward my first hooping experience – The Northwest Hoop Gathering in Bend, Oregon in 2009. We walked side by side and I asked him if he’d ever been to something like this before and he said he hadn’t been to that one. I was brand new to the hooping world and didn’t know who he was or what I was about to experience when I walked into that gymnasium full of hoopers. Mind blown. Life changed forever. Philo was there at the beginning of my hoop journey. I’m not the only one.

  

  MC Philo

  He told me the story of the origins of Hooping.org – THE hooping portal – which, interestingly enough, has some of its roots in the early days of blogging. Honestly, it was like sitting by the campfire listening to the lore of a world that is still mysterious to me.

  This year I missed out on his workshop. Boo! This man can dance in a hoop and I enjoy watching him so much. Both he and Anah Reichenbach (Hoopalicious) are self-proclaimed “body rockers” and it’s sort of my style too. But at Hoopcamp, there were so many ways to hoop and I enjoyed exploring some of those new ways.

   

   

  Some Good Stuff…

  Philo’s Gotta Hoop!

  Hooping.org

  Philo’s Blog
  http://philohagen.com
  http://philohagen.com/hoop-dance/

  Bay Area Hoopers
  L.A. Hoopers Facebook

  Sadly Jason’s hoop making instructions aren’t online.
  http://www.hooping.org/2006/08/how-to-make-a-hula-hoop/

  See the aura photos!

  Music by the dawn machine

   

  

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• Episode 14 – Valentina Martin: Fusion in Life and Love

  Date: 2015.10.11 | Category: PODCAST! | Response: 0

  

  Belly Fusion Workshop

  Recorded in March 2015 in San Francisco before her performance at the DNA Lounge, Valentina Martin caught me up on her life – a fusion of her talents and passions.

  

  Hooping with Nicole Wong in Dolores Park

  I happened to be in town spending time with my husband (we eloped in January 2015!). I timed it just right so I could take Valentina’s Belly Fusion workshop that combines belly dancing and hooping. She’s an amazing teacher and I continue to say that I want to be her when I grow up.

   

  Imitation is supposedly the sincerest form of flattery. I made a run at imitating Valentina when I went to the Rose City School of Burlesque and combined my hooping with a couple of acts. That lasted about 6 months basically because 1) I accomplished my goal and 2) it’s hard to come up with a new act and costume every couple of weeks! My hat – and bra! – off to this lady. She has created spectacular performances and shows with her hoop troupe, The Hoop Unit, her belly dancing and burlesque talents and now in Twisted Orbit, her partnership with her husband, Steve Bags. Fusion.

  

  Partner Possibilities Workshop at Hoopcamp 2015

   

  Lucky for me Valentina and Bags were teaching a Partner Possibilities workshop at Hoopcamp this fall. Now even I can juggle and partner hoop! Looking forward to teaching those new skills to my hoop friends and maybe even my husband.

  Enjoy the interview and please explore the many, many links to her work.

  Happy Hooping!

   

  Video Goodness
  Unity YouTube Channel
  Twisted Orbit YouTube Channel
  Circling the Infinite – Twisted Orbit
  Twisted Orbit Manipulation Theater June 2015

  Unity Hoops Website
  Unity Hoops Facebook Page
  Twisted Orbit Facebook Page

  Performers Without Borders
  https://vimeo.com/135901309
  https://pwbblog.wordpress.com/2014/02/14/sombra-2/

  Hoopcamp Retreats
  DNA Lounge

  Music by the dawn machine
  https://soundcloud.com/thedawnmachine/sets

  

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