I was having back pain and no matter what I did it never helped. After going to the Pilates individual sessions with Mary, my back started feeling so much better! Pilates is amazing, and the regression machines that they use make it a great experience. They have mat classes every Saturday and while I'm still going to the individual sessions, I highly recommend both! The individual sessions are great to start strengthening your back and finding out where you need to focus most on. After going to just a couple of sessions my back feels so much better!
Deborah Stanley, RN
Studio Cooperative Principal
ABT® Certified Teacher in Pre-Primary through Level 5 of the ABT®
National Training Curriculum
EBAS Certified Instructor
Ms. Stanley firmly believes the joy of dancing and the joy of
health/well being coexist. She believes carefully trained dancers
should be able to pursue their art for as long as they like,
unlimited by avoidable injuries. Her teaching style offers students
of all ages the opportunity to develop an ideal balance of
flexibility and muscle strength to ensure that they will have a
lifetime of dancing, be that as a career or as a hobby for personal
fulfillment.
As an adult, Ms. Stanley came to ballet after suffering a back
injury at work, first studying with Deena Shroyer in Leavenworth,
Kansas. Through the discipline of ballet and the study of other
forms of motion, she was able to recover from her injury and
strengthen her back to live free of pain without surgery. She
continues her education in ballet through annual training with
teachers such as Heidi Winton-Stahle, Danile Geisy, Scott Putman,
Kathy Sawyer, Pedro Szalay, and Randall Marks. Before creating The
Studio Cooperative, Ms. Stanley was a cofounder and founding member
of the Board of Directors of the Ballet Arts Academy at the Old
Waldorf School. Her years there gave her the opportunity to study
ballet and pedagogy with Jayne Stefani-Keating. Ms. Stanley’s roles
as administrator, instructor, grant writer, web and marketing
developer, regisseur, and costume designer gave her invaluable
experience in the practical aspects of the dance world. Ms. Stanley
is an ABT® (American Ballet Theater) Certified Teacher who has
successfully completed the ABT® Teacher Training Intensive in
Pre-Primary through Level 5 of the ABT® National Training
Curriculum.
Ms. Stanley is one of the first ten instructors ever trained and
certified to teach Elemental Body Alignment System
(EBAS). EBAS is a series of stretching and strengthening
exercises designed to integrate the body while increasing
flexibility, range of motion and core strength. The focus of EBAS
is to understand basic principles of initiating and anchoring
movements from the pelvis while finding efficient and effective
alignment through experiential anatomy. This system is currently
finding its way into dance curriculums and companies
internationally. It is the perfect complement to the whole body
approach of training at The Studio Cooperative. For more
information on EBAS see www.doebas.com.
Ms. Stanley’s 17 years of Critical Care and Emergency nursing
experience provide the perfect foundation for teaching anatomy,
kinesiology, and nutrition. She is proud teach the AMERICAN BALLET
THEATRE® National Training Curriculum, a breakthrough 8 level
program that combines high quality artistic training with the
basics of dancer health and child development. Ms. Stanley
uses this curriculum as well as the integrated movement techniques
of EBAS, the scientific techniques of Pilates, and a varied
background in educational techniques to teach students how correct
movement and nutrition provide a sound base for long term health
and well being.