Our Teachers
Anna Smallwood
I was first introduced to yoga in 1998 as part of my training at the Victorian College of The Arts, where I studied a Bachelor of Dance. When I first stepped into these yoga classes at the tender age of 19, to support and enhance my physical form as a dancer, little did I know that I was beginning on a path that would continue to both support and anchor me throughout the ever-unfolding choreography of my life.
In 2005, I completed my yoga teacher training at Brahmani Yoga in Goa, India, which led to opportunities that saw me returning every year to India and also to Bali over the next decade. During this time, I taught on teacher trainings and retreats, ultimately continued deepening my own sadhana and curiosity.
In 2013, I opened The Berry Yoga Shala and became a mother. As life shifted gears from that of a traveling yogi, I started to fall in love with community and began to see the profound shifts that occur when people move and breathe together, sit quietly together, co-regulating each other’s nervous systems.
My classes are inspired by my love of movement and music, as well as the bliss of tapping into moments of stillness and spaciousness, and really listening to what arises from within that space.
I am forever grateful for the teachings of Clive Sheridan, Emil Wendel, Julie Martin, and Rachel Hull, who have illuminated my sadhana with their teachings.
Jeana OToole
Jeana offers Yin and Vinyasa Flow classes that are devoted to creating a dedicated and cherished space where we can guide energy towards transformation and our own inner truth and authenticity.
Manifesting through Intention, conscious breathing, sound and movements in the rawness of the moment, Jeana believes through sacred exploration on the mat we can shed our outer layer and simply greet ourselves in a deeper and healing way.
With more than 15 years’ practice and devotion it is with open hearted gratitude she honours her many teachers and counts her blessings that she has been exposed to such amazingly gifted teachers that have guided her on this awe inspiring journey of awareness.
From Senior Iyengar teacher Susan Robertson who initially watered the yoga seed through to Anna Smallwood Ashtanga Vinyasa Teacher and owner of Roaming Yogis who nurtured the seedling and showed her new ways to blossom and grow.
Jeana pays homage to the traditions of Ashtanga and Iyengar Yoga and is also a qualified Yin Yoga teacher. She has received yoga teaching qualifications from Amanda Fuzes ,Prana Space and from Mysan Sidbo Yoga for Yin Yoga teacher training.
Her dynamic classes are a unique fusion of both Ashtanga Vinyasa and Iyengar yoga styles and her Yin yoga classes offer complete surrender where students are invited to keep their hearts wide open while dipping their toes into the vast river of the unknown.
Tayla O’Keefe
Tayla is yoga teacher with a deep connection to and passion for nature. Over the past 13 years she have studied and worked in Holistic Education, Outdoor Education and Outdoor Adventure guiding. Originally from Mparntwe, Alice Springs, she now live on the stunning South Coast after studying and working in Victoria and New Zealand.
Yoga has been an integral part of her life since childhood. Growing up as the daughter of a yoga teacher, her earliest memories of yoga were attending her mother's classes, being the youngest participant by about 30 years.
Fast forward to today, and although her yoga journey has had its challenges, she is continually grateful for the profound lessons, insights, and moments of deep rest and connection that yoga has brought to her life over the past 20 years.
Tayla has received formal training in Traditional Tantric Hatha, Yin Yoga, Meditation, Breathwork, and Trauma Informed Yoga. Tayla believes yoga is a personal practice focused on deepening our connection with our individual bodies and nervous systems through breath and movement. By cultivating compassionate self-inquiry, she believe we can safely tap into the intelligence of our internal environment and embrace an intuitive, body-led practice.
Tayla’s intention is to create a nurturing and accepting space for those who choose to practice with her. She support individuals by encouraging them to have agency over their own journey, fostering curiosity, compassion, and ease as they approach practise.
Gloria Tong
After completing her Yoga Teacher Training in 2009, Gloria left her corporate job and has been passionately teaching yoga ever since.She has a slow, steady style and teaches with attention to detail to encourage mindfulness and make yoga joyful for each individual.
Gloria believes that everybody can do yoga and is inspired by many teachers including Mark Whitwell, Sarah Powers and Mark Breadner.
She teaches hatha vinyasa, yin and pre/post-natal yoga and creates a supportive environment for her students to explore their own practice in a graceful manner.Her classes encourage practitioners to delve into their inner wisdom and move intuitively to strengthen their bodies and open their hearts.
Gloria is committed to help her students live healthier, fuller lives on and off the mat.Whether this is through movement, meditation or breath work, it will be taught in a way that is accessible and right for you.
When not on her yoga mat, you can find Gloria her hula-hooping, swimming and exploring the world with her family.
Taylor Johnston-Petersen
When Taylor first started full time teaching in Primary Schools, she instantly noticed the stress. The overworked teachers, the overstressed students. And very quickly she fell into the same boat. Pure survival. She started taking Yoga classes at the local gym as a stress relief and in 2017 she ventured to Goa to study with Atha Yoga for her 200hr YTT. This experience started the shift in her life's trajectory. She returned to Sydney where she taught Yoga for Climbers at Bouldering Gyms and for students at her school. The effect was evident, students developed resilience and self-confidence. They were calm and ready to learn. They showed patience towards each other and especially themselves. She then expanded and begun to also teach for the teachers. Yoga became an outlet. A therapy.
Taylor practises and teaches Vinyasa Flow with notes from her dancing days. You will often here her ask you to close your eyes and feel your body, rather than focus on what you look like externally, using breath to find total immersion in the moment. Each of her classes is designed for everybody at every stage and every ability, and she has since completed her Prenatal YTT as well to complement this belief. Taylor aims to create a space that is open and welcoming, where you can detach from the outside and find solitude and a moment for you and your body. Yoga is whatever you need. It can be calming. Powerful. Meditative. Flexible. It allows you to be present. To be focused.
