:: VIRAYOGA staff ::


	lynn hazan-devaul
			Lynn is the co-owner of VIRAYOGA. She has practiced yoga since 1985, studying Anusara Yoga since 2001. Lynn derives great joy from helping to build the flourishing community at Virayoga. Lynn has been teaching yoga informally to her friends and family over the last couple of years, and completed her first Anusara teacher training with Amy Ippoliti in 2003. She would like to extend her gratitude to Elena, her teachers past and present, and her family for always supporting and encouraging her growth.


	lily baldwin
			Lily Baldwin teaches yoga because it keeps things true. She is the co-founder of Hatch NYC (www.hatchnewyork.com), a company committed to delivering progressive wellness -- yoga, Pilates and fitness -- to homes, offices and under-served communities. She is a professional dancer who has performed with the Metropolitan Opera Ballet and with multiple New York-based choregraphers. Seventeen plus years of movement study and personal inquiry inform Lily's teaching, which explores the risk and freedom of knowing and expressing oneself with honesty and conviction. Lily thanks her teachers, both the obvious and the unexpected ones.
			back to top
	donna bouthillier
			Donna is very grateful for having found the path and community of Anusara Yoga. This yoga has opened her eyes to the limitless possibility within all of us. Through a light-hearted and inquisitive approach, she aims to inspire in her students the wonder and joy of self–discovery. Donna brings to her teaching many years experience exploring the workings of the body/mind as a massage therapist and dancer. She completed the 2007 teacher training at Virayoga with Zhenja LaRosa. She is deeply grateful to all of her teachers.
			back to top
	lindsey buttles
			Lindsey is a recent addition to the East Coast Anusara community. She and her husband made the bold move to switch coasts from Los Angeles to New York. She has studied with many wonderful teachers from City Yoga in Los Angeles that fuel not only her personal practice, but also her teaching. She looks forward to bringing her light and playful class to the "kula" of Virayoga.
			back to top
	davina cohen
			Davi’s approach to yoga combines detailed attention to alignment with a sense of wonder and a delight in challenging and nourishing one's body and heart. Anusara is the foundation of her practice and she continues to study this tradition and explore other systems of yoga. She initially came to yoga after a series of knee surgeries and found that it radically changed the way she experienced her life. When she’s not in the yoga studio, she can be found performing in theater, dance, and opera. Davi is grateful for the generosity and inspiration of the Virayoga community.
			back to top
	nikki costello
			Nikki Costello is a certified Iyengar Yoga teacher. She has been teaching yoga for 16 years and was previously certified in Jivamukti Yoga and Anusara Yoga. She has studied with extraordinary teachers such as Sharon Gannon, David Life, John Friend, Kevin Gardiner and Mary Dunn. In 1997, she met Gurumayi Chidvilasananda, the spiritual head and meditation master and teacher of the Siddha Yoga path. For 8 years, she taught exclusively for the SYDA Foundation, as a Siddha Yoga Hatha Yoga and Meditation Teacher. As part of the organization she conducted over 100 yoga retreats and events in North America, South America, Europe, India and China. She has returned to New York City with the intention to share the transformative and uplifting power that the path of yoga offers to each one of us.
			back to top

	dana covello
			Dana was drawn to Anusara Yoga because it always offers more. Her teachings weave her love of the Rajanaka Tantra with clear and precise knowledge of the principles of alignment into an engaging practice. Dana is a Certified Anusara Yoga teacher and continues to deepen her understanding by studying with John Friend, Douglas Brooks and the many inspiring and intelligent teachers and students she meets.
			back to top

	lisa danbrot
			A Certified Anusara Yoga teacher, Lisa has been teaching since 1999. She teaches to inspire conscious participation in the ever-expanding universe and to rejoice in the diversity of artistic expression. Endless thanks to John Friend, Lois Nesbitt, Elena Brower, Amy Ippoliti, Jonathan Gordon and all of the truly exceptional teachers in her life, yoga and otherwise.
			back to top

	sarah davis
			Sarah is delighted by the joyful heart of Anusara yoga. She teaches her students how to tap into their innate strength through kindness and patience with themselves and others. Sarah first found Virayoga in 2003 and fell in love with the teachers and students. She completed the winter 2007 teacher training with Zhenja LaRosa. Sarah is eternally grateful to all the teachers and students she has met (and will meet) on this path. www.sarahdavisyoga.com
			back to top

	geoff devaul
			Geoff hails from Miami, swimming distance to the Florida Everglades. Several years ago he commited to an asana practice as a therapeutic way of navigating some necessary shifts in his life. Geoff embraces the art and science of the Anusara and Rajanaka Yoga traditions; in his experience, major physiological changes are the direct result of the implementation of the principles of Yoga. He offers his insight and understanding through challenging sequences infused with levity and precision. Geoff thanks his teachers - WJD (RIP), AI, EBL,ZL, LN, JF and LMHD.
			back to top
	joyce englander
			Joyce has been dedicated to the path of yoga since 1999. She teaches vinyasa flow yoga inspired by the principles of Anusara yoga, emphasizing the importance of breath, foundation, attention and opening up to something bigger than one's individual self through the Anusara® Yoga's Universal Principles of Alignment™. Inspired by teachers John Friend, Mitchel Bleier, Geri Bleier, Ross Rayburn and Sianna Sherman, Joyce comes to us from Chicago where she has been living and teaching yoga for the past four years. She's looking forward to becoming a part of the New York yoga community.
			back to top
	michael fergot
			After beginning yoga in 1982, Michael was introduced to Anusara through Jackie Prete in 2001. A certified RYT Teacher working towards Anusara certification, Michael is deeply grateful to John Friend for his caring and inspiration, as well as Jackie Prete, Ellen Saltonstall and Elena Brower for their teaching and guidance. Michael shares his respectful studentship through his teaching, offering reverence and understanding toward your deepening experience of the currents of Grace.
			back to top

	andrea frade
			Andrea infuses her teaching with poetry; through each pose Andrea highlights the power and beauty that unveils and extends itself when you meet each moment fully. Interweaving the Universal Principles of Alignment with a vibrant sensitivity, Andrea invites and encourages you to step into the current of your own heart and expand the infinite boundary each time you practice. Andrea is tremendously grateful for all her teachers, including her students, who continually provide the ever-expanding sphere of discovery, creativity and illumination.
			back to top
	robin gillies
			For Robin, the steady practice of yoga leads her to live each day fearlessly and deliberately. As a teacher, she challenges her students to explore the practice with a light heart and steadfast self-respect, offering ways to recognize their limitless potential, both on and off of the mat. Robin is grateful to her teachers who have taught her to observe and trust herself.
			back to top
	tara glazier
			Tara was introduced to yoga over 11 years ago at a modern dance festival. Having spent her entire life a dancer, she's cultivated a love of grace, flow, refinement, and energy, all of which she incorporates into her teaching. Tara is an Certified Anusara teacher. She is dedicated to offering her experience of profound healing through the Anusara Alignment Principles and is grateful to Zhenja LaRosa, Elena Brower, Julie Dohrman, John Friend, and Douglas Brooks.
			back to top
	holly horvath
			Holly is a Certified Anusara Yoga teacher with more than eight years of experience. What started as a physical practice for rehabilitation of a foot injury soon became a life long journey of inner connection and wholeness. Holly’s passion, fun loving style, sense of humor and deep connection and commitment to the practice is at the core of her teaching and life. She is a master of weaving the philosophy of Anusara yoga with life in the every-day. This spiritual way of being and teaching combines with her sharp eye and kinesthetic awareness, allowing her to connect, engage and help her students.
			back to top

	laura tulumbas juell
			Laura Tulumbas Juell loves teaching; unleashing a quality of playfulness in her students, leaving them empowered, strong and loving themselves. Laura dedicates herself to yoga by creating an environment that allows her students to grow, live their truth, and expand and open their hearts. A student of yoga for the past 12 years, she is a certified yoga teacher and an Anusara-Inspired™ teacher. Coming to the practice of Anusara yoga has allowed Laura to find her voice and develop a teaching style that reflects her open heart. She is grateful to all of the teachers that have played a part in leading her along this path especially John Friend, Dr. Douglas Brooks, Amy Ippoliti, Elena Brower, Naime Jezzeny , Sianna Sherman and Mitchel Bleier. "It is all about self-love. It starts by taking care of yourself; nourishing and embracing everything that you are, and moving forward from there. I want to create a place for people to have fun in their bodies, honoring themselves, reconnecting to the light that shines within them," says Laura of her approach to teaching yoga. Laura is a native New Yorker, and currently lives in Queens with her beloved Christopher and their son Luke.
			back to top
	sharon kenney
			Certified Anusara Yoga Teacher, Sharon, encourages students to recognize their inherent freedom by approaching the practice with playfulness and dedication. With precise alignment instruction she weaves Tantric philosophy, mythical stories and tales of the everyday to remember and celebrate the boundless capacity of the heart. Sharon holds deep gratitude to all of her teachers, especially John Friend, Douglas Brooks, Zhenja LaRosa and Vishali Varga, and the abundance of blessings that Anusara Yoga has brought to her life. www.empoweredheartyoga.com
			back to top
	zhenja larosa
			Zhenja's teaching encourages students to explore the vast potential of their own hearts and bodies by emphasizing the transformative and therapeutic aspects of Anusara yoga. Zhenja joyfully shares the insights from her dedicated personal practice as well as from her study of Rajanaka philosophy with Douglas Brooks and the revelations of everyday experience. Zhenja is a Certified Anusara Yoga Instructor who has studied extensively with John Friend, Amy Ippoliti, Sianna Sherman and Mitchel Bleier.
			back to top
	danielle lee
			Danielle offers a personal approach to yoga that integrates the insights of various traditions into a vital practice that cultivates strength, grace and awareness. Her classes draw on the precise alignment and heartfelt spirit of Anusara, the fluid grace and creativity of Vinyasa, the breath centered approach of Desikachar, and the quiet power of Yin to help students experience the stillness in movement and the flow in stillness. Also passionate about food and healing, Danielle has developed insight from a variety of nutritional and philosophical paradigms on preparing foods that are beautiful, delicious and health supportive. She is currently enrolled in the Chef's Training Program at the Natural Gourmet Institute for Health and Culinary Arts. It is her hope to inspire her students, through the healing arts of yoga and food, to create a life of expanding consciousness and deliberate positive action that will better their lives and the lives of those around them. Danielle is grateful to John Friend, Lois Nesbitt, Amy Ippoliti, Shiva Rea, Leslie Kaminoff and Sarah Powers who have taught her to become the teacher she is and to the community of teachers and students in NYC who continue to inspire her.
			back to top
	jordan mallah
			Jordan Mallah, an Anusara-Inspired Yoga teacher from Brooklyn, New York, has taught and practiced yoga in the US and internationally since 1996. Through his powerful hatha yoga classes students are challenged to infuse each pose with meaning and intent by connecting with the grand purposes of yoga: to awaken oneself to the essence of our heart and to delight in the freedom of spirit! Empowering his students to discover their fullest potential and to explore their playful, creative essence, Jordan guides students to connect with their innate goodness. From 2006-2007, Jordan had the honor of working as the Global Productions Manager of Anusara Yoga. He toured the world and studied extensively with Anusara’s founder John Friend. From 2007-2008, Jordan served thousands of students as he apprenticed with Sianna Sherman. Jordan’s life experiences range from working as a corporate consultant to volunteering with the Peace Corps in Peru. Jordan is immensely grateful to all of his teachers, friends, family, and students worldwide, who continually inspire him to live with Steadfast Freedom. To learn more, please visit www.steadfastfreedomyoga.com.
			back to top
	catherine mccarthy
			Catherine is a native New Orleanian and Emmy-nominated filmmaker, living in New York City since 1993. While pursuing her MFA at NYU, she started studying with Senior Anusara Yoga teachers Amy Ippoliti and Elena Brower at Om Yoga in NYC. As they segued from Vinyasa to Anusara, so did she. Catherine is now a Certified Anusara teacher. Since August 2005, Catherine has been balancing her time between NYC and New Orleans (NOLA), serving her post-Katrina community via teaching yoga and making documentary films. She would like to thank her family, friends, teachers, and students for their playful support and radical amounts of inspiration. Thanks to such life-affirming encouragement, Catherine is helping rebuild her hometown of NOLA, on and off the mat, one practice at time.
			back to top
	toni melaas
			Toni's teaching cultivates strength, courage and safety by inviting the body into alignment with its innate intelligence. As a co-founder of Hatch NYC, Toni offers individualized wellness sessions to private and corporate clients nationwide; she also continues to perform in the creative realms of dance, theater and film. Toni offers her gratitude especially to Elena Brower, Lois Nesbitt and Gerald Casel, and each of her students. For more on Toni's work, visit www.hatchnewyork.com.
			back to top
	nancy mercado
			Nancy's entire goal in teaching is to remind people to breathe and have a good time as they put their bodies in strange and challenging shapes. A practitioner of yoga for the past nine years, Nancy completed her teacher training with Amy Ippoliti in 2003 and continues to train and study with her teachers. When not teaching yoga, Nancy is editing children's books...and she loves how the two practices inform and enrich one another. Nancy credits her teachers Amy Ippoliti, Elena Brower, John Friend, Jonathan Gordon and all of her gurls in the Anusara yoga community for providing ridiculous amounts of inspiration and insight.
			back to top
	marjorie nass
			Marjorie is a Certified Anusara Teacher who discovered Anusara yoga's life affirming philosophy, universal principals and supportive community when she sought stress relief after a decade working in corporate environments. Her life dramatically shifted for the better as she explored and intensified her yoga practice. The path of teaching followed to offer others the gift of yoga. She offers gratitude to Amy Ippoliti, Elena Brower, Julie Dohrman and Zhenja LaRosa for their encouragement and support, and is honored to teach at Virayoga where she experienced her very first Anusara yoga class.
			back to top
	lois nesbitt
			Before teaching yoga, Lois was a professional writer, editor, and internationally exhibited artist. She holds degrees from both Harvard and Princeton universities. She has studied extensively with Sharon Gannon and David Life of Jivamukti and spent a decade practicing Mysore-style Ashtanga yoga under Eddie Stern of Patanjali Yoga Shala in New York and Sri K. Pattabhi Jois of Mysore, India. In 1997, she met John Friend, founder of Anusara Yoga. Lois credits John with transforming her yoga practice and entire outlook on inspired living. She is now a Certified Anusara Yoga Teacher serving on the Anusara Yoga Teacher Training Committee, where she helps shape the path toward Anusara certification. Lois also studies yoga philosophy under Professor Douglas Brooks, a world-renowned scholar of Hindu Tantra. Lois travels to offer workshops, retreats, and programs for teachers, weaving vinyasa-style yoga into the exquisite alignment of Anusara to invigorate and uplift her students. For more on Lois' work, visit www.blueskyyoga.com.
			back to top
	siri peterson
			Siri Peterson met her first yoga teacher, Gurumayi Chidvilasananda, when she was eleven years old and has been a devoted yogi ever since. She is an Anusara-inspired Yoga teacher who empowers practitioners to connect with their inner teacher through inquiry and exploration. Siri’s classes combine precise physical instruction with practical, grounded philosophy. Students can expect a vigorous asana practice that combines flowing, dance-like sequences with long holds to cultivate the balance between effort and surrender, on and off the mat. Siri’s teaching is deeply informed by her continuing studies with John Friend, Dr. Douglas Brooks, Sally Kempton, and the many incredible members of the vibrant New York Yoga community. In addition to teaching yoga, Siri and dances and choreographs, presenting her work in various venues throughout NYC.
			back to top
	jennifer pettit
			Jennifer's study of yoga began fifteen years ago, having journeyed through a range of traditions before she found her home in the Anusara style. Her own experience with yoga during her pregnancy and postpartum fueled her desire to become a yoga teacher, in order to serve other women experiencing the incredible journey into motherhood. She earned her certification for this specific interest through Baby Om as well as Mary Barnes Yoga for Two, and has been teaching prenatal and baby and me yoga for 5 years. Her teaching has been deeply influenced and kindly guided by John Friend and Professor Douglas Brooks.
			back to top
	tom o'brien
			Tom completed his Teacher Training with Lois Nesbitt at Virayoga. He began studying yoga with Elena Brower at The Movement Salon about eight years ago when he overcame acute arthritis through the practice of Anusara and has been pain free for almost seven years. Tom's teaching is a mix of vinyasa with long, strong holds, focusing on alignment inspired by Anusara yoga and breathing to reveal a deeper awareness on and off the mat.
			back to top
	Jorja Rivero
			Jorja Rivero is endlessly fascinated and inspired by Anusara Yoga, Rajanaka Yoga, and gestalt therapy, she intends for you to live your expression, healthy engagement, and EXPANSION. She completed her teacher training with Zhenja LaRosa in 2007 and in 2009 has become an Anusara inspired teacher. Jorja can also lead you into EXPANSION through Holistic Life Coaching. This involves dialogue and asking the questions you don't dare ask yourself. You will be seen, acknowledged, heard, and challenged. We’ll brainstorm and work with your opposing views to expand your perspectives, awaken your possibility and intuition, and translate these into meaningful actions. Clarify what is important to you as you awaken inherent resourcefulness, wisdom, and your creative expression expands www.mindbodyexpansion.com.
			back to top
	susanna harwood rubin
			Susanna is an Anusara-Inspired™ yoga teacher who views practicing yoga as a joyful celebration of the heart, body, and mind. What she loves most about Anusara is how it infuses a sense of play and inquisitiveness into yoga's physical and philosophical practice, which flows over deliciously into her everyday life. When she is not on her yoga mat, Susanna is busy in her studio as a visual artist focusing on sculptural installations and drawings. Her work has been widely exhibited and reviewed both nationally and internationally, and is in numerous public and private collections. Susanna offers vast oceans of thanks and gratitude to her teachers, John Friend and Dr. Douglas Brooks, who continually inspire her.
			back to top
	lorraine shea
			Lorraine began her asana practice in 1998 and knew she was home when she found her teachers, Elena Brower, Dr. Douglas Brooks, and John Friend. Today, she blends her love of Anusara yoga with her life as a writer and executive editor for FIT YOGA magazine. Teaching in New York since 2002 and with a special love for restorative yoga, Lorraine combines refined alignment and breathing for a meditative focus, creating a tranquil environment that invites students to engage more fully in their experiences. She joyfully thanks Douglas, Elena, and Lynn Hazan for their love and friendship.

			back to top
	jonathan shoemaker
			Jonathan is an Anusara-Inspired yoga teacher. His classes are infused with loving care for his students as well as mindful attention to the greater context of the devotional practice. Building on the wisdom of the great teachers who precede him, Jonathan strives to teach from his own experience and from his own heart. Jonathan is a graduate of the Virayoga Teacher Training program and holds the RYT 200 certification from Yoga Alliance. He has studied extensively with Anusara Yoga founder and master teacher John Friend, logging over 250 hours of workshops and teacher trainings with John. Find him on the web at www.centrestreetyoga.com
			back to top

	vanessa spina
			Vanessa is a Certified Anusara yoga teacher. She completed a year long intensive teacher training in the Anusara style of yoga, in New York City. She continues her studies of yoga, philosophy and therapeutics with both of her beloved teachers John Friend and Ellen Saltonstall. She began practicing yoga as a teenager with Ellen Saltonstall. She resumed her studies as an adult and now teaches yoga in Cape Cod, Massachusetts, New York City, and Westchester. She also teaches yoga to children and teachers at Fieldston School in Riverdale, N.Y. Vanessa’s teaching encourages self-exploration and self-acceptance through playful, inspiring, practice. For more on vanessa's work visit www.vanessayoga.com
			back to top

	olynda spitzer
			Olynda Spitzer creates a nurturing and empowering space in which you will discover and celebrate your strength, wisdom and beauty. Her fluid teaching style blends Tantric philosophy, precise physical alignment, and playfulness to encourage a deepening of self-awareness and move beyond perceived limitations. After many years of studying dance and Capoeira, Olynda came to yoga and was drawn to the clarity and elegance of Anusara Yoga. She completed John's Teacher Training in 2005, is an Anusara-inspired teacher and is working toward her Certification. Olynda offers gratitude to Paul and Sommer Sobin, Lila Pierce Brown, Cynthia Hughey and John Friend.
			back to top

	eric stoneberg
			Certified Anusara® Yoga Teacher, Eric Stoneberg first discovered yoga during a college course called The Religious Art of India. Intrigued by the mythic narratives and evocative depictions of the Divine, he followed his new interest further by trying a local meditation course. Hooked on this "inner yoga," he explored a variety of meditation techniques before trying his first asana class in the 1994. An exploration of the myriad philosophies and styles of yoga flourishing here in New York City led him to Anusara Yoga through Elena Brower. He became a teacher of this potent style, known for its progressive biomechanics and celebration of the heart, in 2002. Eric's classes skillfully blend the empowering alignment techniques of Anusara Yoga with an artful, evocative celebration of embodiment. He encourages his students to intelligently engage their inherent freedom while playfully revealing a depth of ever-expanding experience. Eric's classes are infused with practical teachings applied from his dedicated study of Rajanaka Tantra with friend and mentor Dr Douglas Brooks, to whom he is eternally grateful. He extends extra special blessings of love to his wife Heather and their son Jasper.
			back to top
	amy soucy
			Amy is a certified Hatha Yoga instructor with a natural affinity for teaching adults and children alike. She is passionate about offering yoga to people of all ages, and has recently begun teaching family friendly classes to young children and their parents or caregivers, as a trained Itsy Bitsy Yoga Facilitator. Amy has studied with esteemed teachers such as John Friend, Douglas Brooks, Mark Whitwell, Dharma Mitra, and Helen Garabedian. She is dedicated to helping others cultivate health and harmony in their lives through this empowering practice. She continues to deepen her own understanding of this vast science through the rich, heart-centered practice of Anusara Yoga, and will complete an Anusara Teacher Training, with Julie Dohrman, in 2009. In addition to Yoga, Amy is an accomplished actress, singer and dancer with a BFA in Musical Theatre, having performed in national tours, New York and regional theatre. When not on the mat, Amy is busy singing, writing songs, and learning to play the guitar… an instrument, like the body/mind, of infinite possibilities!
			back to top
	mary telesco
			Mary happily discovered Anusara Yoga on a beach in Mexico after struggling with repetitive stress injuries for ten years. Through practicing Anusara's Universal Principles of Alignment and experiencing the life-affirming philosophy of the method, Mary has healed her injuries and now teaches supportive, spacious classes. She completed Virayoga's Teacher Training with Zhenja Larosa in 2007.
			back to top

	ola widera
			For Ola, how we approach our practice is a metaphor for how we approach our lives. Attracted to the joyful spirit of Anusara and its elegantly effective approach to therapeutics, Ola is committed to sharing her experience of alignment and expansion as a teacher. She completed teacher training in 2007 under the guidance of Zhenja La Rosa.

			back to top

580 Broadway [betw Prince & Houston] Suite 205 New York, NY 10012 212.334.9960 [map] Check for latest Substitute Teacher updates Register for VIRAYOGA email updates	staff

	elena brower \| lynn hazan-devaul lily baldwin \| donna bouthillier \| lindsey buttles \| davina cohen \| dana covello \| nikki costello \| lisa danbrot sarah davis \| geoff devaul \| joyce englander \| michael fergot \| andrea frade \| robin gillies \| tara glazier \| holly horvath laura tulumbas juell \| sharon kenney \| zhenja larosa \| danielle lee \| jordan mallah \| catherine mccarthy \| toni melaas nancy mercado \| marjorie nass \| lois nesbitt \| tom o'brien \| siri peterson \| jeniffer pettit jorja rivero \| susanna harwood rubin \| lorraine shea \| jonathan shoemaker vanessa spina \| olynda spitzer \| eric stoneberg \| amy soucy \| mary telesco \| ola widera

	elena brower
		Elena Brower, Certified Anusara® Yoga Teacher, is the founder of VIRAYOGA. In her classes, you will experience Anusara Yoga and Rajanaka Yoga through the lens of Self-Mastery, a precise practice aimed at reclaiming your most precious asset: your attention. Through her studies with Hugo Cory she endeavors to communicate the experience of refining your attention within the offerings of asana and meditation. She is currently at work on her first book.