Donna Carnow

Donna Carnow (she/her) is a pole dancer, aerial pole artist, national pole champion, and human pretzel-tornado.

Donna is the 2022 US National Pole Art Champion where “she POLE the show” (New York Post). Her performative abilities have been described as the “production’s true showstopper” (New York Times), “a world-class talent” (The Scotsman), “breathtaking” (The Stage), “mesmerizing” (The Guardian), and celebrated in Variety, The New Yorker, The New York Post, Theatermania, and more. Donna has been a resident pole artist in world-renown circus companies like Spiegelworld (The Hook) and Circus Flic Flac (Dortmund, Duisburg) where she was described as giving “the powerful art of pole dancing a new, enchanting dimension.” Other notable credits include P-VALLEY STARZ, Don Toliver “NO POLE”, Company XIV, Virgin Voyages, STAMPTOWN, The Box (NYC, Soho), The Hard Rock Casino Atlantic City, The Slipper Room, House of Yes, The McKittrick Hotel, and her Drama Desk award winning performance “LUST” in Seven Deadly Sins NYC (Off-Broadway) voiced by Cynthia Nixon.

Donna is the co-creator of the aerial pole collective VERTICAL DREAMSCAPE with her duo partner, Gina Alm. They that have toured their award-winning show DUSK/NIGHT/DAWN (★★★★★ - The Stage) across New York, the UK, and Europe.

Donna teaches in NYC and around the world via workshops and her online platform as a master-trainer. Her technique-focused classes are creatively activated by her fiery energy, anatomical knowledge, passion for her students’ growth, and her belief in the magic of movement. Originally from Chicago, Donna hails from an experimental modern dance background and holds a B.F.A in Dance from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where she started pole dancing in 2013.