Teacher Bios

Practicing since 1990, Yoga East founder JERRY ANATHAN  has studied far and near with some of our era’s most renowned teachers including David Swenson, John Schumacher, Sri K. Pattabhi Jois, Richard Freeman, and Randal Williams. Exploring the vital interaction between energy and movement, Jerry’s eclectic style, coined Jerasana Vinyasa, goes beyond the obvious physical sensations of the postures. Through fluid sequencing and questioning, Jerry works from the ground up, literally and figuratively. She brings awareness to the invisible thread that connects body, breath, and the more subtle areas of thoughts, soul, and witness consciousness (in Sanskrit, the Koshas), and encourages her students to look for their edges on all these levels. Jerry has been told she teaches with grace, humor, compassion, and a playful and open style. Jerry is available for one-on-one sessions and holistic wellness consults and programs. See YogaForWellnessPtown.com.

ALICE NEILEY is a certified Kripalu Yoga teacher with additional experience in Vajra and Restorative yoga practices. Both on and off the mat, she continues to draw from her yogic studies with Emily Garrett, Sofi Dillof, Megha Buttenheim, and Jairaj Williams. Based on the concept, "How gentle can you be with yourself?" as well as the idea of simply cultivating joy through yoga, Alice's classes are open and accessible to all levels. More specifically, she offers creative sequences of traditional asana (posture flow) that allow students to decide the amount of challenge their individual bodies need, and hopefully draw them into a more connected relationship with their bodies and a deeper sense of relaxation. An artist at heart, Alice can't help but include  silliness, some poetry, and a song or two.

CHRISTINE FRISCO is a certified Kripalu yoga instructor, with hundreds of additional hours of study since 1992 in Kripalu, Iyengar, Ashtanga, Ana Forrest Yoga, and other modes of hatha yoga. She also studies yogic and Buddhist philosophy. She has been a yoga instructor since 2000 and teaches an eclectic style incorporating her different yoga studies. Her focus is on safety through proper alignment, and the breath--from that dual foundation, all the fruits of yoga are available. Her usual style is best described as slow flow--beginning with stretching, followed by long sun salutations which weave in standing postures, balancing, abdominal strengtheners, backbends, twists and holding postures. www.christinefriscoyoga.com

JOE FISCHEL
  Is a New Yorker by birth, Chicagoan by residence, and Provincetowner in spirit.   He has spent the past ten or so summers in Provincetown, slicing deli meats, folding sweaters, selling sex toys, reading on the beach, and having fun.  He has practiced yoga for nearly four years and recently completed a 200-hour teacher-training program in Core Power Yoga, Chicago.   Core Power is an engaging, challenging vinyasa practice. When not in the studio, he may be spotted running in North Truro, completing his PhD at Joe’s Coffee on Commercial St., or dancing his tuchus off.

JEN KOPEC completed the 200hr Forrest Yoga Foundation Teacher Training Program with Ana Forrest in April 2009 and is currently enrolled in a year long Mentorship Program in Forrest Yoga finishing her certification.
 
After practicing different styles of yoga, Jen was drawn to Forrest Yoga because it invites you to be exactly who you are. It gets you strong and centered connecting you to your core through deep breathing and long holds in asana (poses). It does not require flexibility only an open mind. As a teacher, Jen’s intention is to create and maintain a safe space for students to experience yoga in their own way, at their own pace.

DIAN HAMILTON received her certification as an Integral Yoga teacher in 1997. Her focus includes chanting, asana, deep relaxation, breathing practices and meditation. She has taught Integral Yoga Hatha I in NYC and Provincetown. In 2007 she received her certification as a Laughter Yoga teacher. She has led Laughter Yoga Meditation workshops in Provincetown and NYC since 2006. For the past two years she has been working toward certification as a Chakra teacher with Anodea Judith and Lion Goodman of Sacred Centers at Kripalu. “I laugh every morning and that wakes up my playfulness for the day!” Dian is currently writing a memoir.

CHRISTEL PIERRON, LMT, CYT

Originally from France, then Montreal, Christel lives now in Cape Cod, where she offers massage and Reiki, practices Soto Zen meditation, and teaches yoga to children and adults. A certified yoga instructor, Christel offers group yoga classes, private yoga instruction, various workshops, creative movement and chanting meditation. With a background in dance, Christel has been studying over the years several forms of yoga such as Sivananda, Kripalu, Iyengar and Kundalini Yoga, in Canada, India and USA. Since she received teacher training in “Zen Yoga/Yoga Energetique" in Montreal in 2003, Christel has taught yoga in Montreal, Canada, Sedona, Az, Golfito, Costa Rica, and on the Cape since 2005. Through a slow meditative flow of postures, and gentle stretches, her classes promote peace, strength, balance and awareness. They are open to all levels, as well as her fun dancing workshops. “Stillness and movement informing each other, to create an opening and a ground for Peace, Love, and Joy in our hearts”. Christel has been working as a massage therapist since 1999, also adding to her practice Energy healing modalities. Her clients often report on her massage sessions as “feeling like being in Heaven”. See her website at www.oceanofserenity.com for a look at her incredibly broad range of experience.

WILL COONS

Will Coons is a licensed massage therapist and a registered yoga teacher with over 1,600 hours of formal training and certification in massage, yoga, QiGong, meditation and Pilates. He has touched and taught, with kindness, humor, consideration, respect, strength and skill, thousands of people over the past eleven years. Will integrates all he has learned over his 50+ years of living into his classes, is unconventional in his approach, uses humor extensively, and believes that wisdom, peace, loving kindness and joy would be ours if we each got out of our own way and learned to  "listen with the ears of our hearts". His web site is www.massageandyoga.com and telephone is 508-487-8358

MICHAEL ALBA Certified in the vinyasa and Hatha traditions, Michael enjoys inspiring students to grow and challenge themselves through yoga.  His teaching combines focus, movement, precision, and gentleness in a natural and unrushed manner.  

Michael first came to yoga when he took a corporate yoga class at a small law firm, and built on his earlier gymnastics training to pursue this endlessly stimulating and nurturing discipline.  He has studied extensively with David Magone, Kara Jasinski, and Mimi Loureiro and completed his certification at Frog Lotus Yoga, under the instruction of Jacqueline Heisel and Jenn Yarro.  

For more information on Michael, visit www.michaelalbayoga.com.

TONY AGOSTINELLI

began his yoga practice sixteen years ago because of an aching hip. Starting in the Iyengar tradition, he has since moved into many other forms of Hatha including Jivamukti and Ashtanga. He has found wisdom in each and continues to pursue these and other approaches. While the physical benefits of asana practice still captivate him, he attempts to incorporate the philosophy of the yoga sutras and the principles of the energy body (prana, chakras, nadis) into the practice of asana.  His classes are developed to liberate flow and put the student in touch with a grounded, safe and abundant energy source. His classes tend to include pranayama, vinyasa, short meditations and focused ‘workshopping’ of select poses. In addition to five years of experience as a fitness coach and club level Olympic Lifting coach, he maintains an RYT 200 certification from the (amazing!) Yandara Institute. Tony is intrigued by the balance of vigor and stillness, no longer has an aching hip and would like to thank Jerry for the opportunity to teach at Yoga East.