A New Year’s to Remember

Ivorie Jenkins

Ivorie, an EYT 500-hour vinyasa and meditation teacher and yoga therapist, has dedicated herself to the practice, study and teaching of Yoga since it revealed its healing benefits during her professional dance career. After receiving a B.A. in Communication Studies from Northwestern University, Ivorie embarked on a fifteen-year performance career. She toured nationally and internationally, danced roles in film, television and commercial ad campaigns. At the peak of her dance career, she moved to Vegas to perform with Cirque du Soleil as an original cast member of the show, Viva Elvis. There she performed over 1,500 shows and began a lifelong friendship with co-teacher Willis Johnston! During her time with Cirque du Soleil, Ivorie turned to yoga as a pre and post performance ritual. The practice offered a sanctuary from the stress of the entertainment industry and the negative self judgement that often plagues the minds’ of artists. Not to mention, yoga gave her the tools to heal a debilitating back injury and get her back on the stage. Ivorie is now based in Los Angeles, teaching at studios, corporate offices and with private clients in their homes. Her studies include over 1000 hours with Senior teachers Annie Carpenter, Noah Maze and Loyola Marymount’s Advanced yoga therapy RX program with mentor, Dr. Larry Payne. This accreditation allows Ivorie to see private clients dealing with a wide range of ailments and offer a personal prescription of wellness via the holistic lens of yoga. There is a soul and a depth that Ivorie brings to her classes. Her attention to alignment and thoughtful sequencing will guide you safely while still challenging you to move beyond your perceived boundaries. What she loves most about teaching is reminding students of their wholeness, their innate perfection and inner wisdom so they might become comfortable with befriending who they already are. ivoriejenkins.com

Willis Johnston

Since a very young age, Willis has loved movement. He started dancing around age 10 and never looked back. After pursuing a BFA in dance performance from SMU, Willis danced professionally in New York City and Las Vegas with the Metropolitan Opera, The Chase Brock Experience, and Cirque du Soleil (enter the fabulous Ivorie into his life!). Willis found yoga in 2009 through navigating the physical and mental challenges of a professional dance career…this was the game changer. For Willis, yoga seemed to shift and reorganize him. It soothed and strengthened his body and his mind, while giving his spirit a lift. Since his initial adventure into the artful practice of yoga, Willis’ relationship with yoga has only grown stronger. After the passing of Willis’ beloved mother, he decided to shift a few things in his life. So, in 2014, He left his dance career and big city life in the United States and moved to his soul-home of Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, where he dove heart first into his 200-hour teacher training with his incomparable teacher Anna Laurita. Willis began teaching yoga shortly after and have since expanded his trainings, studying 300-hours with the dynamic and knowledgable Noah Mazé and recently became a certified Katonah yoga teacher, training under the founder Nevine Michaan, Abbie Galvin, and the incredible teachers at The Studio and Katonah Yoga Center. Willis leads yoga classes, workshops, and retreats in Mexico and BEYOND. Willis believes the practice of yoga offers up an incredible chance for humans to get into their bodies, mediate their circumstances, and expand into their full potential. Yoga has the power to create great change—not only on a personal level, but also on an interpersonal level. In Willis’ classes, expect to feel very welcome. Willis hold a space of non-judgement, where you are invited to explore all aspects of your self through breath work, meditation, and mindful, intelligent movement. willisjohnston.com