Meet Us

Meet Our Studio

We are a community of people, in constant learning, dedicated to sharing with you our years of practice and study of yoga so that you can remove boundaries within yourself + between each other.

Meet Our Team

Bryn Chrisman

Teacher, Studio Owner

Teaching classes since 2003, teacher trainings since 2006 and practicing much longer.

I opened Yogamaya to share and care for what I love, yoga. My classes are challenging, devotional and fun, but not frivolous. A long-time student of Iyengar teachers Carrie Owerko & Kevin Gardiner, and Jules Mitchell, I integrate the texture and subtleties of alignment & biomechanics with flow and purposeful sequencing. We approach the asanas with the mood of appreciation, climb deep into our bodies, and discover a way of moving that is at once humble and powerful.

Danielle Harbord

Yoga Teacher

Danielle found yoga in search of healing and inner peace. An avid runner and former athlete, she also enjoyed the physical and mental challenge it presented. Through the connection of body and spirit, she realized her practice would be a lifelong journey and an inspiration for living.

Her classes are challenging, yet carefully sequenced with attention to alignment and blended with her love of music. She aims to create a supportive and playful environment where students can expand their awareness and explore. She completed her 500-hour certification at Yogamaya and continues to learn and be inspired by her fellow teachers and community.

Amanda McDonald

Yoga Teacher

Amanda, E-RYT 500, has been practicing yoga since 1999. A graduate of Yogamaya’s 300hr Advanced Teacher Training, she loves the lessons yoga has to teach about life. Seeing students win small victories and gain confidence both on and off of the mat is her favorite part of teaching. Amanda loves the invigorating aspects of yoga as well as the deeply relaxing and meditative aspects. She tries to share the joy and clarity she finds in her practice with her students, while encouraging them to enjoy their own experiences.

Jeff Percacciante

Yoga Teacher / Studio Manager

Jeff found yoga and meditation in 2009 as a means to connect with his
body, confront anxiety and depression and overcome issues around body
dissatisfaction and dysmorphia. He completed his 200hr training in 2012,
three subsequent 500hr trainings, and continues to study with beloved
teachers Sondra Loring, Ame Wren, Daniel Max, Alex Auder and Bryn
Chrisman.

His classes are highly inclusive and well loved for their
physical and mental inquiry, cultivation of curiosity, courage, strength
and sense of humor.

Julie Pasqual

Senior Teacher

I am a 500 RYT. I received my 200-hour TT at Devotion Yoga, and am REALLY PROUD to have been part of the first Advanced 300hr YTT at Yogamaya!! I find the teachings of yoga ENDLESSLY fascinating, inspiring, and humbling – from the intricacies of alignment to the heart-opening spiritual philosophy of Bhakti!

It is the practices of Bhakti that I try to center both my yoga teaching and my life around, taking inspiration and instruction from Radhanath Swami, Dhanurdhara Swami, Kaustubha Das, and other teachers at the Bhakti Center. I am ALWAYS inspired by Yogamaya’s teachers, and grateful to be part of this amazing staff!!

Gina Benson

Yoga Teacher

Gina is a full-time yoga teacher and Ayurveda Practitioner in NYC. After discovering yoga she made it her mission to spread yoga and healing with others. A family member introduced her to Yogamaya, the only yoga studio in the city that Gina feels at home. Gina’s bubbly personality is shown through her teaching and practice. With a love for education and studying, Gina’s classes continue to change and improve. Don’t be surprised if she includes a mini anatomy lesson or Ayurveda jargon into her classes every once in awhile. Though chatty, her warmth and friendliness make you feel welcome and comfortable!

Katie Facada

Yoga Teacher/ Designer

In 2010, I moved from SF to NYC and found Yogamaya, where classes wove poetry into the very cells of my being and helped me somatically process and show up for my life.

Teaching and mentoring new teachers are ways for my love of the practice to emanate out. I believe in intelligent sequences paired with a sweet, sweaty flow, and I aim to help students find their strength, softness and “enoughness” in every class.

I bow deeply to the practice and all it’s given me, especially my teachers and everyone I’ve come to know on this path.

Alexandra Paddock

Yoga Teacher

Alexandra, who responds to Alex, Ham, Pad but mostly Allie, first came to yoga to rehab a hamstring torn dancing. Through the process of her recovery, she healed a leg and found a new way of moving that in turn awoke a sense of mind-body-spirit connection that has fueled her ever since. Alexandra received her 200-hr certification with Yogamaya and thanks her teachers for their wisdom, guidance and inspiration. Always with a playful spirit, Alexandra’s classes aim to balance thoughtful inquiry with fine attunement to detail. Alexandra is grateful for the practice of yoga for helping her see with her heart and hear with her bones.

Karen Jane Wright

Yoga Teacher

Karen aims to offer her students a space for deeply personal practice and growth, knowing firsthand just how transformative it can be. Her classes tend to be athletic and challenging, yet she’s a supportive and personable guide, wanting her students to feel strong and capable in their practices. As a former high school teacher, she thrives on the energy of a room full of learners, and relishes the opportunity to demystify challenging poses, or just offer a judgement-free space for personal and physical development.

Rachel Fedde

Yoga Teacher

Rachel Fedde found that years of competitive fencing had left her muscles tight and turned to yoga to regain flexibility. She soon grew to appreciate yoga for not just its physical benefits but also the focus and calm that the practice brings. She completed her 500 hour certification at Yogamaya. In teaching she hopes to share the freedom and peace she’s found in yoga with others.

In what little time she’s not on the fencing strip or on the mat, Rachel is also an award-winning film and television editor who loves to travel.

Lori Nathanson

Yoga Teacher

When I discovered Yogamaya soon after it opened in 2010, I knew I found a yogic home. Yoga unites my physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual health through a range of practices grounded by asana.

My teaching reflects yoga as a practice, not performance or perfection, so there’s space to explore, play, and push boundaries. I offer students a vinyasa flow, uniting movement and breath, as a moving meditation. I invite students to look within, building self awareness and compassion for self and others.

I am grateful to practice and teach in the Yogamaya community, which amplifies the benefits of yoga that I carry with me off the mat.

Jess Parks-Kocher

Teacher Training Faculty

Jess has been a mover and a seeker her entire life. Jess has been practicing yoga for nearly two decades and teaching for 9 years. Additionally, Jess works as a birth doula, reiki practitioner and is studying Chinese Medicine. She is an anatomy dork, birth nerd and all around movement enthusiast.

Level 2

You have an understanding of the basic poses and transitional movements of a Vinyasa class (down dog, plank, chaturanga, cobra/upward dog). You’ll get more dynamic sequences with challenging poses, subtle alignment of basic poses, and an introduction to other yoga practices.

Level 2 / 3

You’re a Level 2 or a Level 3 student, or somewhere in between. This is a mixed level class that gives you a challenge when you want one. Progressions and variations offered by the teacher will allow you to practice at your own individual level while keeping with the class flow and energy.

Level 3

You have a strong, ongoing practice. Here you’ll get more challenging poses and techniques for approaching poses, deeper variations and dynamic sequences. You’ll explore subtler aspects of yoga and yogic practices (bandhas, pranayama, chanting, mudra, restorative, therapeutic, etc).

Yogamaya Restore

Completely passive, no aggressive. A gentle, yet deep practice that opens the hips, legs and shoulders to alleviate stiffness and stress. This slower, meditative class uses bolsters, blankets, blocks and chairs to organize the body in a way that calms your nervous system and relaxes your entire being.

Pre/Postnatal Yoga

This one hour practice is for prenatal & postpartum students (from 6-weeks post birth onward). Come move, breathe, strengthen and reconnect while engaging in a community of new to be & new parents. Take some time out to focus on you.

Level 1

You’ve taken a yoga class and know what a sun salutation is (or you’ve seen one on instagram). Level 1 emphasizes proper alignment and detailed teachings of the transitional movements in Vinyasa classes.

Meet Yourself

Yogamaya is made of people from all walks of life who practice yoga that’s rooted in alignment, grounded by self study, and inspired by truth and possibility. We are united by our love for asana, movement and spiritual teachings all in one space – and we love experiencing those things together.

Yoga is a practice of self study. But we believe that connecting with each other on this journey is the key to a deeper connection with ourselves, and everything we’ve created is to help foster these connections. Through movement, stillness, song, silence. And everything in between.