Under the enticing pseudonym Foxy Roxy, dancer Roxanne impresses and empowers those around her with her pole, heel and twerk moves. After strutting out of the corporate world, she now performs and teaches dance full time. She’s also one of the personalities modelling our new VENUS collection. Ahead of the collection’s second drop, we caught up with Roxanne to discuss the transformative power of dance, ideals of femininity and whenever she feels most sensual (hint: it’s a lot of the time). 

Could you describe yourself in five words?
Level-headed, driven, entrepreneurial, outgoing and effervescent. 

You’re a very impressive heels pole and twerk dancer. What drew you to these forms of dance, originally?
I danced a lot as a child but never perceived it as a career. Whilst working in the corporate world, I got more into the sensual, empowering styles of dancing. I liked the way it made me feel free and able to express myself, as well as how it empowered other people. In the classes I teach now, I see a lot of women going through a self-journey in which dance manifests throughout their lives: They become more confident, powerful and manage situations differently even outside of dance. It’s also very impressive, which is nice.

Do you prefer to dance for yourself or perform for others?
I probably get more energy from performing, I really feed off the energy people give me. 

And how do you hope your dance makes other people feel?
I want them to feel good, maybe inspired dance themselves. Also, empowered, that’s very important… And impressed, of course!

What does femininity mean to you, personally? 
I think it’s about expressing yourself as your most authentic being, not caring about ‘how’ you express that. When people think of femininity, they think of only one thing, one typical feminine person. But to me, femininity isn’t even gender-specific. Instead, it’s about being authentic: A person that gives the world what it needs - unapologetically! 

And what role does fashion or appearance play in your expression of femininity? 
A while back, I shaved all my hair off and without it, I felt quite boyish. But in doing so, I learned to appreciate the other parts of me. We focus on hair so much, especially feminine hair, that removing it allowed me to look at other parts of myself; my face, my body, the way I dress. So I think it plays a big role, but it shouldn’t. 

You also have quite a presence on Instagram, who just announced their new - frankly bias - guidelines. What do you think of IG as a medium for expressing feminine sensuality or sexuality? 
It’s difficult. A lot of people, women especially, are being targeted and are now unable to express their most authentic selves. Instead, we have to worry about showing “too much” skin or dancing a “certain” way. I’m put off by Instagram, but I also need it. I mean, we built the platform and a lot of great interactions came from it. I was able to talk to people I otherwise never would have, because they live in a completely different country or continent. Luckily, there are other platforms where censoring is much less. But Instagram is still ‘the’ platform, the main one.  

It does hold a lot of power.
Yeah, and it’s really pushing patriarchy and white supremacy. I feel like a lot of us are trapped, it’s both addictive and allowed us to connect with so many people we never would have connected with before. And - especially in the pandemic - a lot of people use it for their business. Like myself, I can’t dance in the studio so I want to post content online, and then they’re going to censor it? That’s not fair. 

Onto more cheerful topics: When do you feel most sensual? 
I feel sensual, generally, a lot of the time. But probably most sensual when I’m performing, both as a teacher or on stage. But also when I’m at home late at night, with dim lights… yes, just a lot of the time. 

Haha, perhaps the better question is: When don’t you feel sensual?
Ohh, when I wake up in the morning with morning breath and messy hair… that’s definitely when I feel the least sensual! 

I can imagine the lockdown has hit you, as a dancer, pretty drastically. Are there any rituals or routines you do to keep your mood up?
I handled things a lot better during the first lockdown when I worked out every day. The second lockdown, the one we’re in now, is a lot harder. But I try to work out every day, do some yoga, go for walks, catch the sunlight. I’m a very active person so moving keeps me together. 

Photography: Sascha Luna
MUA: Samuel
Model: Roxanne