Ivorie, Yoga Therapist and E-RYT 500, has dedicated herself to the practice, study and teaching of Yoga since it revealed its benefits during her professional dance career. After receiving a Bachelor of Arts in Communication Studies from Northwestern University, Ivorie did the unordinary and deferred her professional goals to instead, pursue her passion of movement and art. This decision morphed into a fifteen-year professional dance career! She toured nationally and internationally with various American repertoire companies, danced roles in film, television and commercial ad campaigns. In 2009, she earned the opportunity to perform with Cirque du Soleil as an original cast of the show Viva Elvis! Ivorie worked with Cirque for 4 years and performed over 1,500 shows.
It was during this time with Cirque du Soleil that Ivorie turned to Yoga as a pre and post performance ritual. The practice of Yoga offered a sanctuary from the stress of the entertainment industry and the negative self judgement that often plagues the minds of artists. It also gave her the tools of discernment and introspection to heal a debilitating back injury and other smaller injuries. It was a natural transition to shift her life in movement from dance to Yoga and guide others to find their own healing.
In addition to dance, Ivorie has a deep passion for travel. Dance and yoga have taken her all over the map but her fondest travel was an adventure to India – the motherland of Yoga- for 3 months of what she calls “Soul Travel.” Traveling solo, she explored over 15 cities, ate with locals, slept in ashrams, studied Yoga with gurus, volunteered as a teacher, and completed a 10-day Vipassana silent meditation retreat. This immersion enhanced both her teaching and personal practice to understand Yoga as more than a physical practice but a “Soul Travel” back to center.
Ivorie is now a full time Yoga teacher and Yoga therapist, based in Los Angeles. She has completed 500 plus hours with her main teacher Annie Carpenter, 300 hours with Noah Maze, 200 hours of Hot Yoga training, 60 hours of PreNatal with Jennifer Moore and recent completion of 3 of 4 years of Loyola Marymount’s Advanced Yoga Therapy RX program with mentor Dr. Larry Payne. This accreditation allows Ivorie to see private clients dealing with everything from cancer to frozen shoulder and treat them through the holistic lens of Yoga.
You can expect her classes to be thoughtful, creative and physically challenging with a subtle inquiry of how the physical realm can reveal unconscious thought and behavior patterns. This insight can ultimately lead to an inner calm and contentment with exactly where you are in life. Her career as a dancer gives her a keen eye to identify how different bodies interpret Yoga asana. According to Ivorie, no body is the same therefore, Yoga is not a panacea but a personal prescription of wellness.