Woman teaches pole dancing to the elderly at senior center and it's so wholesome: 'They loved it'

Embla Bergli, a pole dancer, performed and taught a little pole dancing at a less-than-expected venue: a senior center. A now-viral TikTok clip on her handle @embla.pole shows a snippet of the performer teaching enthusiastic seniors, who all try the pole with very cute dances of their own. A senior went all around the pole, while another senior who was standing at the pole used some footwork. Throughout their performances, the senior performers had smiles on their faces. Bergli's video begins with her performing, with text on the video stating that she was scheduled to perform at the senior center. "And let me tell you; they loved it," the text stated. Bergli shared in the clip that as the night ended, many seniors asked for her autograph. "You know it's been a successful night when you end up writing autographs," the text over the video read as the clip ended.

Bergli expressed her pleasure at witnessing everyone's happiness in a comment to Newsweek. "I would really love to do something like this again," she said. After witnessing a woman perform at a club in Greece, she said that she has been pole dancing for almost three and a half years. "I got inspired and started pole training as soon as I got back home from the trip," she said. "I've now quit my job to focus 100 percent on this, and I want to help make the sport more commercial and let people see how cool it is," she said.

Norway native Bergli revealed that she has only performed at a few events because few people are familiar with pole dancing. Pole offers "great training," according to Bergli, which is one of its main advantages. "I can let loose and be extra without being judged," she said. "I get strong, and it's really just a badass sport that matches my personality."

More than 37 million people have watched the TikTok video that Embla Bergli posted. Viewers were ecstatic to witness the seniors' joyful response. User @Madsss said, "The recreational facilitator at this facility is AMAZING. Love to see it." Another user, 💃🏻 Krista 💃🏻 commented, saying, "This is amazing!!! Officially fav post of the day!! 🥰🥰" TikTok user Cathrine Marie Vaelia commented saying, "That’s so wholesome🥰 And you’re beautiful and very talented✨"

Viewers described the video as "wholesome" and complimented Bergli on her performance. "Almost everyone loves pole if they just give it a try," a comment read. "Love to see it." "But they didn't have to flex on you like that," a commenter joked, referring to the seniors' performances. User Linds MoffattOmg wondered if she could do this in her own centre, commenting, "I’m a rec therapist and will be asking my manager if this is possible on Monday 😂😂"

The video has even gone viral on Instagram with 221k views, with many users sharing how happy it makes them to watch seniors get so excited about dance! Instagram user @esthertroya commented, saying, "This is such sweet content. I'm sure you livened up their week! 👏" User @amelie_pole_dancer agreed, commenting, "❤️❤️❤️❤️ That’s so amazing 👏🏾" A user shared that one of the seniors reminded them of someone they used to know. @gimmetheugly shared, "that lady with the headband looks just like my 4th grade teacher, Mrs. Howard! And she was a ballet dancer too."