About Katie Lake

I originally came to yoga as a cross-training method to support and enhance my dancing but very quickly found that the benefits of the practice move far beyond the physical. 

I am most passionate about utilizing the practice of yoga to help others discover a sense of awareness, freedom, and joy in their bodies. My classes invite curiosity and encourage individual choice making, and my goal as a teacher is that you leave the practice feeling invigorated and more at ease than you started.  

I completed my 200 hour certification at the Yandara Yoga Institute in Baja California in 2016 and have been teaching in Boston and New York City for the last five years. I’m currently in the process of completing my 500 hour certification through Down Under School of Yoga in Cambridge, MA. 

When I am not teaching or practicing yoga you can find me dancing with little house dance, reading a book in the park, or spending time with foster dogs from the Animal Refuge League. I’m so grateful to be part of this growing community at Sacred Machine! Looking forward to seeing you on the mat! 

About Emily Sullivan

Emily Sullivan’s dual-careers as a yoga teacher and a massage therapist began with her training in ballet. While Emily was growing up on Cape Cod, her ballet teacher taught her how to express herself through movement. She excelled, and she was performing with Boston Ballet’s dance corps before graduating from high school. In college, she was inspired by the Buddhist principle of right livelihood. Emily first enrolled in a massage therapy program after teaching English in Africa and Europe. Her new career combined her earlier inclination toward physical movement with a deeper aspiration to help others. 

Emily studied bodywork with Tom Karis and meditation with Lama Konchok Sonam before opening her private massage therapy practice in 2010. Further studies in Thai Yoga Massage with Kam Thye Chow set the stage for a dedicated yoga practice. Being drawn to Astanga and Vinyasa Flow, Emily trained with Mimi Loureiro. As a result, Emily introduced yoga poses and short sequences to her clients as self care. To make yoga accessible for all her clients, she became certified by Renee LeVerrier to teach yoga to people living with Parkinsons and other mobility disorders. She is currently completing her 300-hour program at Down Under School of Yoga. 

Emily lives in East Somerville with her young daughter. They balance their busy lives with regular escapes to the beach.

About Izzy Ball

Isabel Ball (she/her), is a contemporary dance artist currently based out of Portland, Maine. She grew up in the Chicagoland area where she studied dance at the Chicago Academy for the Arts. Graduating with an honorary dance award she then moved forward to complete her BFA in Contemporary Dance Performance with a minor in Psychology at the Boston Conservatory at Berklee. Isabel studied Gaga and Batsheva repertoire while training with Addo Platform in Vancouver, BC and Cascais, Portugal. During the pandemic Isabel worked with Addo to premier a virtual international dance festival titled Our Stories. In 2020 she joined little house dance company under the direction of co-artistic directors Heather Stewart and Riley Watts. Since moving to Portland this year to work closely with little house dance, she has performed at the Maine Mechanics Hall as well as at the State of Play dance festival in San Francisco. Isabel continues to develop her interests in improvisation, choreography, collaboration, teaching, and dance on film work.

About Kate Brigham

I’ve always loved to create and process through movement. A childhood of ballet classes and afternoons creating dances in my basement led me to Bates College, where I majored in Dance and Women’s Studies under the legendary Marcy Plavin. Post college I lived a lifelong dream: both leading my own modern dance company in Brooklyn and Cambridge; as well as dancing for and learning from many incredible artists. Yoga had always been a complementary practice to my dancing, and as time progressed, it became a more prominent aspect of my movement ritual.

In 2012 I was compelled to become certified as a 200 hour teacher with O2 Yoga in Cambridge, MA, under the watchful eye of the brilliant Mimi Loureiro. I further expanded my knowledge of alternative methods by receiving my certifications in Integrative Wellness and Life Coaching, Yin Yoga, Yoga Nidra, and Reiki II. In early 2021 I completed my 500 hour Yoga teacher certification through Arcana School of Yoga with the inspiring Jennie Joan Ferrare.

I have personally lived, and fervently believe in, the healing power of creatively sequenced movement. In times of joy and delight, the connection it creates between the intellectual and the emotional allow me to fully live in the present, and inspire innovation throughout all areas of my life. During my debilitating struggles with post-partum depression and anxiety, I explored release via expressive movement. I found solace and the capacity for self-compassion in those moments between breaths. I am a strong advocate of the power of mind-body integration, and the truly transformative powers that it holds.

About Rachel Aronne

As a teacher and student, Rachel honors the teachings and history of this practice and creates a safe, loving space for people to show up as they are: whole, perfect and complete. When Rachel began her asana practice over a decade ago, she simply viewed the practice as a way to move her body, but the more she stepped on her mat, the more connected she felt with herself and with this deeply rooted tradition. Rachel completed her 200hr YTT in 2016 through Hari-Om Yoga School in Costa Rica & 300 hr YTT through Courageous Yoga Space in Denver, CO and deliver these practices she's learned from those who've taught before her in a way that is joyous, unique and with a loving heart. It is an honor to be a yoga teacher, and Rachel believes in the roots of this practice knowing that it allows us to cultivate a higher sense of self and connection on and off the mat.

About Kate Holden

As a lifelong learner, yoga became a natural part of my journey. Developing a steady practice in 2019, yoga was a needed balance to a rigorous professional life. I found the mind, body, breath connection life changing and my passion is now to share this powerful work with others. I have studied with Murielle & Mae Corwin of Sundara Yoga in Brunswick, Maine, where I completed my 200-hour teacher certification, and with Margo Rosingana, where I received her restorative yoga training certification. 

 I offer a strong yet accessible teaching style that allows you to savor savasana all the more. With a focus on alignment and breath, my classes are designed for all levels of practitioners to benefit from their yoga journey. I believe a yoga practice is not about hitting a perfect posture but rather a self-study of embodiment, mindfulness, and connection breath. 

 When I am not teaching yoga or studying anatomy, my second passion is living aboard my boat Runway and exploring the Maine coast. In Maine's winter months I look forward to snow and the quiet it brings. 

About Alyx Henigman

Alyx began her yoga journey alongside training as a professional dancer in Boston, MA - using yoga not only as a strengthening practice, but also as a retreat from performative movement and a space in which to focus on self care and awareness. During 2020, while in lockdown, she received her 200 hour training from Down Under School of Yoga after deciding that she wanted to deepen her knowledge of yoga and share the joy that she found within the practice with others.

She sees teaching and personal practice as a constantly evolving and growing symbiosis, and is always looking for ways to connect with people and self through yoga. As a massive nerd, she is always exploring new body pathways and anatomical information, which then trickle their way into her classes. 

Alyx has recently moved from NYC, and is greatly enjoying soaking in the salt, fresh air, and sunshine here in Portland. She is also working as a dance artist, teacher, and choreographer for the local company, little house dance, and is a dedicated cat mom. 

About Leigha Hart

Leigha has been a student of life since an early age. Over the past three years, she’s completed four different women’s groups all focused on inner work, embracing the feminine spirit and shaping our lives to be the most magical journeys we can imagine. She continues to be a student in a year long embodiment workshop. Her own education on these topics now fuels her reverence and love for holding supportive, contemplative and joyful space for others to explore themselves as well.

About Alex Michaud-Duncombe

Alex Michaud-Duncombe grew up in Bangor, Maine. It was there she found her love of movement through dance. Alex has been practicing yoga for 12 years alongside her modern dance education. She received her BA in Dance and French from Connecticut College and has danced and practiced in many beautiful shalas in her travels around the world. During Covid, she found yoga to be more than just a physical practice, and sought safety and solace on her mat. It was the healing power of this practice during that time that drew Alex to wanting to share with others.

Alex received her 200 hour certification through East West Yoga in Ubud, Bali, Indonesia in early 2023. Humbled by her teachers and teachings there, and a forever student herself, Alex is beyond excited to share this practice with others and to continue to learn and grow with her students. 

Off the mat, Alex enjoys immersing herself in nature, getting lost in a good book, traveling without itineraries, being in her garden, and spending time with her family and friends. She can’t wait flow with you.