Director: Lisa Minett
About Lisa
Lisa has worked as a professional performing artist and educator for over 20 years. Having worked extensively in Australia as a dancer and choreographer, Lisa headed to the USA to take up a full acting scholarship. She obtained a Bachelor of Fine Arts (Theatre Performance) from the University of Florida, graduating with Highest Honours. Whilst in the USA, Lisa performed in Broadway regional theatres, choreographed numerous musical productions, and began working as a university lecturer in acting and movement.
Her desire to help actors find creative enjoyment and physical freedom through a greater understanding of the physical body led her back to Australia where she became the Head of Movement and Dance for NIDA. Her approach to the physical body has been through her dancers discipline and her yoga philosophies. She now embarks on a journey to share with everyone the importance of a strong physical presence in achieving their professional goals. She is an experienced and dedicated Yoga teacher, inspiring personal trainer and renowned dance teacher.
Manager: Bec Bainger
About Bec
Bec Bainger is the manager at MMS and a passionate instructor who loves educating and inspiring clients to move in a way that feels great and works for their bodies. With a background as a professional stunt woman for television and film, contemporary dancer and physical theatre performer, she holds a Bachelor of Dance Performance, Performing Arts Diploma and is a qualified Pilates, Barre, Group Fitness and Pre and Postnatal Fitness Trainer.
Bec has over 15 years of experience teaching and believes there is nothing more rewarding than being apart of a client’s journey to wellness. “I was initially drawn to Pilates through my dance injuries and used it to help rehabilitate my body. This insight and experience helped give me a unique set of skills in delivering effective fitness programs, providing the client with positive results.”
Yoga Program Director: Nickie Hanley
About Nickie
Nickie’s yoga journey began in 2005 at her first yoga retreat in Bali. It was life changing. During that retreat she let go of old stories and stepped in to the life of a yogi and never looked back.
Nickie completed her Teacher Training in 2010 with the Australia Yoga Academy (AYA) and has since completed multiple trainings with Power Living and Laughing Lotus in the United States (to name but a few!).
In 2013, Nickie created Disco Yoga; a fusion of powerful and soulful Vinyasa flow with a Live DJ. This incorporated Nickie’s previous life as a dancer with her love of yoga and music as a way for her students to connect more deeply to their own joy. A joy that they can take off their yoga mat in to their daily lives.
Also the director of NFP Dharmaland Festival which had the first run in March 2020 which was a huge success and now an online yoga studio called LOVEYOGAonline.com.au since November 2021.
Training Advanced Diploma of Yoga Teaching, 500h level training, Australian Yoga Academy, Melbourne Certificate in Vinyasa Teaching, Alignment & Adjustment, Australian Yoga Academy,
Melbourne Foundation Course in Raja Yoga Meditation, Brahma Kumaris, Melbourne, Advanced assisting teacher training Play, Sydney, Retreat with Tiffany Cruikshank and Duncan Peak in Byron Bay 2013 (part of Power living 200hrs teacher training).
In 2014 trained at Laughing lotus with Dana Flynn completing the 50hr sequencing module and 50 hr Fly training.
Pilates Program Director: Virginia Annese
About Virginia
Virginia has a background in dance and classical ballet. Discovering dance at 3 yrs old, she studied full time profession ballet at The National Ballet school Melbourne as a teenager.
She discovered Pilates through a knee injury during this time at 14 and has been practicing Pilates for over 30 years now including through two pregnancies and beyond.
Virginia holds a Cert IV in reformer and mat Pilates from Breathe Education and has taught Pilates locally for the past five years.
Aimee Schollum
About Aimee
Aimee is a Melbourne based, New Zealand born instructor, dancer, choreographer and graphic designer.
She has been teaching extensively for the last 12 years and comes with a wealth of experience and knowledge across Dance, Pilates, Barre and Yoga. Aimee also holds a Diploma of Dance and Honours Degree in Art and Design. She has created three independent dance works and is currently a finalist for The Australian Ballet Telstra Emerging Choreographer.
Olivia Garrasi
About Olivia
Jade Gardiner
About Jade
Ailsa Woodhouse
About Ailsa
Ailsa first discovered Pilates in 2008 and immediately connected with the method. Previously prone to a string of injuries, Pilates taught Ailsa how to gain strength without pain or injury and gain confidence in movement. An obsession turned into a career when Ailsa left behind her previous work as a geologist and undertook a Diploma of Polestar Pilates studio and Rehabilitation Method and has now been teaching for close to 10 years. Ailsa has specialist training in pre and postnatal Pilates and extensive rehabilitation experience. Her style of teaching is focused and attentive. She’s always keen on helping you get more out of your class. Ailsa is grateful to have been able to find a career she is passionate about and loves the process of constantly learning and expanding her knowledge around movement.
Maja Jadrijevic
About Maja
Maja’s journey has been a journey woven with dedication and resilience. Years of unwavering self-work have led her to the present, where she stands as a Reiki Master, Yoga Teacher, esteemed Member of Yoga Australia, accredited Reiki Master Teacher and the National Coordinator of Reiki Share Day at Reiki Australia.
Maja finished her 200 YTT in Melbourne in 2019 and has been teaching ever since. Under the guidance of her mentor Jules Jenkinson, she developed unique expression of her classes. Being on her spiritual path for many years now, she is very passionate about yoga philosophy and the fact that yoga is not just a physical activity, but a spiritual practice, so you can expect ancient yoga teachings woven into each class.
Maja’s favourite style of yoga is dynamic, playful and dance like flow, inspired by Prana Vinyasa. The focus of the classes is on connection of breath, movement and transitions. You can expect creative sequences that will allow your body to flow in new directions and immerse yourself inti the moving meditations.
Maja teaches that the way we move on our mat should be the way we move outside of our mat.
Tara Buhagiar
About Tara
Tara Buhagiar has been a student and teacher of yoga for nearly twenty years. In 2008 she expanded into meditation. She practiced various traditions until finding her love for mindfulness meditation.
Tara’s classes explore how mindful movement, stillness, pranayama and meditation can cultivate healing and transformation. She enjoying holding space for students to dive deeply into their own practice. Tara is grateful to guide students on their yoga journey.
She is a certified Mindfulness Meditation Teacher and certified in Hatha, Yin and Restorative Yoga. Tara is passionate about teaching mindfulness workshops and courses and feels privileged to also be a Yoga Teacher Training Facilitator. She has a BA in Communications, is certified by The Society for Holistic Therapists and Yoga Alliance.
Catherine Silvester
About Catherine
Stella Yun
About Stella
Yoga to Stella is the connection between Mind, Body and Spirit but more so about connecting people. Stella loves teaching yoga as it enables her to share the practice in an inclusive way and helps build connections with the people and community. Stella teaches from a place of love and compassion.
She gravitates to simple alignments and creative sequencing while aiming to strike a balance of effort and ease on the mat. Stella first turned to yoga and mindfulness practice to get her through a difficult time in life and fell in love instantly.
Sahar Babazade
About Sahar
Sahar is a highly trained Pilates instructor with an international certification from Polestar Pilates and is a qualified Fitness instructor.
Sahar’s passion for Pilates was born through her battles with the condition known as Fibromyalgia. Upon commencing Pilates, she noticed an instant improvement in her sleeping patterns and the practice enabled her to lead a happy and pain-free life.Sahar continues to follow her passion and has devoted her life to sharing the gift of Pilates with more and more individuals every day. She encourages her clients to become their best selves through exercise of both mind and body.
In Sahar’s class, you will benefit from her extensive experience with an emphasis on form and technique. You will gain more strength and body awareness as well as noticed improvements in posture, flexibility, and balance.
Suzy Stewart
About Suzy
Tori Styles
About Tori
Her classes are an open-hearted invitation to explore movement, philosophy and breath, anchored in the roots of a profound, holistic tradition.
Annie Manos
About Annie
Annie began her yoga journey as an Iyengar student and loved the non-competitive environment her teacher and classes offered. 20 years later, she completed her yoga teaching diploma 350 hrs with AYA to deepen her practice and find knowledge and healing.
Her teaching approach fuses east and west. Respecting the traditions of yoga, an interest in philosophy and a passion for the health sciences, she also brings 26 years of operating theatre experience to inform the base of her classes.
Annie’s presence as a teacher is to hold a space of kindness, openness, possibility and self-exploration. Her classes are creative, dynamic and holistic, encouraging clients to be their authentic selves and be present in the moment.
Joelle Auffray
About Joelle
Joelle Auffray, mother and yoga teacher with a qualification in Mindful Birth yoga education.
A Yoga practitioner for over a decade and teacher since 2019, Joelle’s classes emphasise mindful breath and, movement creative sequencing and challenge students to grow and expand their yoga knowledge and practice. Her goal is to create a welcoming, fun, and inclusive space where anyone can practice, no matter their yoga background.
Carlee Mellow
About Carlee
Carlee has been teaching yoga for over 20 years. She was a Senior Teacher at Power Living in Sydney for 10 years, teaching Power Vinyasa, Align, Yin, myofascial release classes and various workshops. She was responsible for staff training and development as a Performance Coach and facilitated yoga teacher trainings. She completed her Bachelor of Dance, performed professionally as a contemporary dancer and choreographer for over 20 years and taught at prestigious institutions including the Victorian College of the Arts, UNSW and companies Chunky Move and Sydney Dance Company. Most recently she completed her Master in Physiotherapy and currently works in private practice in Flinders Lane.
Carlee draws from her experience as a dancer and physiotherapist to deliver a creative class using intelligent sequencing principles to build the practice safely and effectively. This allows people to develop the necessary resources – breath, strength, resilience and insight – to embody the practice and move with freedom and confidence.
“By tapping into the intelligence of the body and moving with intention, we give the mind time to rest and as a result stillness and clarity emerge. We create a flow state where we feel connected and at ease. It is in this state that we experience yoga and we make an important distinction – The practice is not separate from us – we are the practice.”
Bronwyn Meyrick
About Bronwyn
Bronwyn Meyrick is a qualified yoga and group fitness (freestyle aerobics, step and jump rope) instructor. She started practising Ashtanga Yoga in 2005 and it was a natural transition for her to start teaching in 2010.
Yoga practice has been a constant in Bron’s life through its inevitable twists and turns, and she has rolled out her mat in studios and hotel rooms in Australia, USA, Europe, and Asia. Never a dancer or a gymnast, she found in Ashtanga Yoga a way to feel connected to her body, and loves the strength, flexibility, insight, joy and community that the practice can bring. She is driven to share this with others through her teaching.
Bron also has a PhD, an Executive Master of Public Administration and a Bachelor of International Studies and Social Science, and has for many years held senior roles in the public service.
Janelle Kingsley
About Janelle
Janelle felt called to study yoga almost 20 years ago. Through yoga, she deepened her inner wisdom, accessed further vitality and nourished her soul.
Janelle is trauma-informed in her approach and guides practices in Vinyasa, Hatha, Yin, meditation and somatic movement. She has undertaken various trainings over the years, and is currently continuing studies with world-renowned teachers like Dr Peter Levine in Integrative Somatic Trauma Therapy.
She is an Ambassador for The Yoga Impact Charity and describes her classes as joyful, caring and connected.
Ayami Urli