Coming from a dance background where everything was about quantitative aesthetics–how flexible you were, how long you could balance, how many pirouettes you could do–it took me a while to settle into the real intention behind a yoga practice: allowing the postures to get you into your body, and allow the paired breath and movement to unite body, mind, & soul.
“It’s not about how deep you can go into the pose, it’s about meeting yourself where you are in this moment, every moment.”
Coming from a dance background where everything was about quantitative aesthetics–how flexible you were, how long you could balance, how many pirouettes you could do–it took me a while to settle into the real intention behind a yoga practice: allowing the postures to get you into your body, and allow the paired breath and movement to unite body, mind, & soul.
“It’s not about how deep you can go into the pose, it’s about meeting yourself where you are in this moment, every moment.”
One of my teachers said this during my teacher training, and after that, my practice changed. I stopped forcing myself into the most advanced postures just because my body could go there and really started to listen.
I found a deeper stability and trust within myself, and try to impart a synthesis of technique—for safe execution—and “feelin’ yourself” acceptance into my classes. I take a technical and holistic approach to teaching, using a combination of scientific research, anatomical cues, and spirituality to inform all the senses + levels of being through the flow of vinyasa and the stillness of restorative.
Remember: force is counterproductive. It’s easier to strengthen the mind/body/soul connection by first utilizing the breath to clear the mind, calm the nervous system, drop into the body & be in pure presence, and then to pair the breath with movement allowing that focused attention to create acceptance, ease, and space for healing.
Vinyasa Flow
Allow yourself the freedom to be yourself as you move and breathe through the physical yoga postures. Private, Group, & Corporate class sessions available.
VIA ZOOM
$15+
Barnfox Yoga
Open level flow class meant to help stretch you out, reinvigorate your circulation, & simultaneously wind you down after work. Elongated savasana complete with live soundscape to send you home relaxed and blissed out!
LIVINGSTON MANOR
$15
Yin/Restorative
Allow yourself the safe space to slow down, calm down, and enter a state of deep healing. Private, Group, & Corporate class sessions available.
VIA ZOOM
$15+
I wanted to be a ballerina for Halloween at 18 months old, begged to take dance classes for three years before leaping into my first one, and had the success of a professional career that spanned two decades starting as young as 11 years old. See performance resume.
Growing up, dance was my outlet from stress and dysfunction and a space for experiential physical expression of an undying passion.
Looking back, my process of learning and performing in this industry reflects back to me my internal development and evolution throughout my life.
Looking back, my process of learning and performing in this industry reflects back to me my internal development and evolution throughout my life.
Where I once was scared of improvisation and clung tightly to the objectivity of technique, my years of emotional and mental healing now have me in a place of craving only that which feels natural, good, organic; absolute self expression through creative movement.
It has taken me time to acknowledge, heal, and transition from the expectations, judgments, abuse, and devaluing of self I experienced from years as a professional in an industry that on the other hand was also a dream come true to successfully pursue.
But both the light and dark of it have led me to blend my passion for movement with the healing that has occurred within and because of those experiences.
Where I once was scared of improvisation and clung tightly to the objectivity of technique, my years of emotional and mental healing now have me in a place of craving only that which feels natural, good, organic; absolute self expression through creative movement.
It has taken me time to acknowledge, heal, and transition from the expectations, judgments, abuse, and devaluing of self I experienced from years as a professional in an industry that on the other hand was also a dream come true to successfully pursue.
But both the light and dark of it have led me to blend my passion for movement with the healing that has occurred within and because of those experiences.
Exploring that further—integrating my love of dance, our innate connection to movement as living beings, and the vital role creative expression plays in healing—I’ve noticed dance almost coming full circle. From cultural traditional practices to a choreographed performance art able to be executed only by those with technical prowess to active therapy open to universal participation, dancing has made its way back to an all-inclusive invitation of freedom, enjoyment, and self expression.
The experience of dance itself continues to evolve.
Unhealed experiences and emotions can get trapped in the body, stagnating and creating physical manifestations of emotional pain points from knots and muscle spasms to autoimmune disorders and dis-ease. Motion and emotion are interconnected (emotion = energy in motion), so moving the body in a way of organic self expression helps to access and dislodge this energy creating a more embodied cathartic experience and integration deeper than sometimes words can offer. This is the experience of dance and movement I aim to pass on to others.
“Movement never lies. It is a barometer telling the state of the soul’s weather to all who can read it.”
—Martha Graham
Learn to Dance in the Rain
NEW YORK, NEW YORK
I often felt left out, like I didn’t fit in anywhere. Kids were often mean to me for being different, and I never understood why. This was my personal homage to being myself unapologetically, dancing in the rain, in my favorite shoes, to the beat of my own drum.
Fashion Peaches
Bushwick, New York
Really fun collaboration in tandem with numerous talented friends utilizing my own dance background to highlight wearable art pieces. Outerwear threads: Kimono Dave.
Under Construction
WASHINGTON, D.C.
This is the first video I filmed and edited myself. My movement took inspiration from the external visual and audible surroundings, and edited in a way that also felt reflective of something under construction, a work in progress.