Words by Annette in conversation with Bolly Golightly| Images by Katia Schwartz

Over the last year, many of our staff and students have got to know Annette, aka Mimi Kitty. A visitor from the USA, Annette made Sky Sirens her second home, coming into the studio several times a week. She started her Sirens journey in Lyra classes and has since tried Sling, Pole, Burlesque, Fans and floor classes. You name it, Annette has given it a go, making friends and encouraging others everywhere she went. Sadly, Annette has left Australia for her home in the US. But we couldn’t let her go without asking her more about her time with us. 

Bolly: How did you find your way to Sky Sirens?

Annette: My husband, Roy, suggested we come to Sydney to get our Master’s degrees at the University of Technology, Sydney. One day, he went for a long walk and ended up on Crown Street in front of a very intriguing window display.

He rushed home and said, ‘Annette, you need to sign-up for a class’.

In a matter of - I think - seconds, he searched online and found a four-week mini-term which was going to start in a couple days. I was a bit apprehensive; not because I had never tried to dance with a pole, and it was not because I had never been scantily dressed before. I just was not feeling good about myself. I was out of shape and I simply did not have the energy to climb even one of the hills in Surry’s Hills, needless to say climb a pole. But I decided to give it a go. Maybe this would be just what I needed. 

Bolly: Tell me about your first day at Sky Sirens?  

Annette: I wanted to be prepared for the experience, so I watched several of the online routine videos in advance. Next, I dressed in the recommended class attire. I bought booty shorts and wore a crop top. I had my suggested bottle of water in hand, and although nervous, I was instantly welcomed by the lovely Dahlia Daye. She showed me around the impressive studio, and I awaited my first Babydoll Pole class with Mighty Mouse. I enjoyed that first session and almost immediately signed up for another, burlesque with the glamourous Eva Devore. My first aerial class was the next term with the incredible Wednesday. Over the 2.5 years I have been in Sydney, I have also tried my hand at sling and fans all taught by the most amazing instructors at Sky Sirens. 

Bolly: I know because I saw you come out of a different room every time I was at the studio! So what’s your favourite apparatus? 

Annette: Once I finally gained my confidence back, I really enjoyed fan dancing and the comfort of those large ostrich feathers. It didn’t take long until I was able to experience the excitement when I finally unveiled my ‘bazoombas’ while my fans fluttered behind my back in the form of a peacock. Perhaps not an apparatus per se, but Bollywood dancing also became a favourite.

I was never a dancer, so learning the steps was often a challenge.

Like everything else, it required numerous views of the routine videos and practice, practice, practice. Whether Bolly Sling or Bolly Lyra, the end product was simply beautiful.

Bolly: Annette, you’re one of the only students to have taken Bolly Lyra and Bolly Sling continuously. It means the world to me that you would embrace my cultural art form. And I loved having you in class, seeing you develop as a Bollywood dancer, and seeing your knowledge of Bollywood grow. 

Annette: Well, my love, like so many other students, became the Lyra and YOU!

It was the always caring and extremely patient Bolly Golightly, I met for the first time in July 2020, who helped me to finally get through to Pearls Plus

I would like to think if I were staying longer in Sydney, I could move up to your Emeralds class next term. I have mastered the Amazon, the straddle, and I can finally do an invert, but it is not very pretty, sadly, the hocks mount remains my nemesis move. 

Bolly: We all have our nemesis moves - and I can’t believe how far you’ve come. Seeing you get your invert and nail those Pearls Plus routines was teaching highlight for me. But it was also wonderful to see how people gravitated towards you. You connected with so many people at Sky Sirens. 

Annette: You know, Sky Sirens is like a band of misfits! We’re all created equal and everyone brings their unique personality and skill set. It’s like nowhere else I’ve ever been 

Bolly: That’s so wonderful to hear. I know you’ve had such a rich and diverse life, and it’s great that Sky Sirens can find a place in your heart. 

A: It’s true, I’m a mother and a grandmother, I’ve been in the military, worked in event management for decades and now my husband and I have our Masters. At Sky Sirens, Mimi Kitty, my alter-ego, came alive (Mimi is the grandmother term the grandchildren use). 

Honestly, Sky Sirens kept me alive while I was here. 

Bolly: Oh, Annette, we’re going to miss you so much. Tell us why it’s time for you to go home.

Annette: I would love to stay here in Sydney forever, but I have several grandchildren back in the U.S. and in Germany who are missing their ‘Mimi Kitty’. So, I must say ta-ta for now, but I hope to be back in Straya when the borders reopen next year. I will surely plan my three-month stay around Sky Sirens’ session calendar. In the meantime, I hope to find a studio where I live in Washington, D.C. and Miami, Florida so I can practice my skills, but it will not be the same. I will never find a place anywhere in the world like Sky Sirens. I am sure I can find an aerial studio, but not one with the eclectic true blue darlin’ group of friends I have met over the years and their ‘no worries’ attitude. 

Socially distanced hugs to all. I will truly miss every one of you.

You know, Sky Sirens is like a band of misfits! We’re all created equal and everyone brings their unique personality and skill set. It’s like nowhere else I’ve ever been.

Annette is celebrating her 60th Birthday this week. From all of us at Sky Sirens, we wish you the happiest birthday and hope you can celebrate Siren style!