The studio is slowly re-opening…

As COVID restrictions lift, we’re continuing to explore what “PY828 Beta” looks like as we put in-studio offerings back on the schedule. We’re continuing to move forward with all of us in mind. Our goal is to honor consent, equity, community, inclusion, and comfort for all as we take slow steps towards re-opening.

For those of you who have not attended in-studio classes yet, but are interested in doing so, here are the parameters. You can find our entire schedule through our online calendar as well as read about our class descriptions, pricing, and membership options.

MASKS & VACCINES

All of our teachers are vaccinated, but we will not be asking students for their vaccination status, with the exception of any class marked on the calendar as “Vax-Only.” Masks are encouraged, welcome, and optional in the studio. Let’s not make any assumptions about why someone might be wearing a mask. We are trusting each of us to follow the appropriate precautions out of care, love, and respect for all. PY828 will follow city mandates as they arise.

CLASS SIZE

All of our in-studio classes are limited to 8 students with social distancing in place. Even though social distancing is no longer required by North Carolina, we’re keeping things spacious in The Mother Studio. When it feels right, we’ll consider increasing capacity to 10 or 12 and so on. Partner work is on hold for the moment, but if you’d like a physical adjustment from one of our teachers, we’ll honor that request.

CLEANING PRACTICES

We are doing all of the cleaning we were ever doing and more. Saucha – cleanliness – is the first of the Niyama, the internal precepts that all yogis follow on the path of yoga, and we practice saucha at Purna Yoga 828. Even before the world starting singing “Happy Birthday” while washing their hands, our teachers always washed their hands and feet before teaching. A saucha practice not only supports our health but helps release the past, literally and energetically. We have always prided ourselves on the order, beauty, and cleanliness of the studio. Keeping the studio tidy is an aspect of our yoga practice. Our studio rooms are swept after every class without exception. Props are put away carefully with a sense of visual order and beauty. We’re the studio that asks you to wipe out the bathroom sink after use so it’s clean and tidy for the next person. We believe in leaving things better than you found them, making the space around you beautiful for the sake of beauty itself, and color-coding blocks and blankets. Props are wiped down after each use. Blankets are sanitized on a regular basis, and our mat wash is mostly alcohol. Hand sanitizer can be found at numerous points throughout the studio, and our Molekule air purifier is always running.

IN-STUDIO-ONLY, ONLINE-ONLY, & HYBRID CLASSES

Because we want yoga to be available to anyone who wants it, we are maintaining some classes as online-only alongside our in-person-only and hybrid classes. Because we are not interested in only centering healthy, vaccinated students that are able to share space with others at the studio and because we recognize that there is a huge convenience (and environmentally-conscious) factor in being able to roll out your mat at home, two minutes before class starts, we will always maintain online access to our classes. For online attendees, along with 10-class passes and monthly memberships, we are able to continue to offer donation drop-in rates of $5, $10, or $15. In-studio students can use a class pass, membership, or drop into class at $15.

By making some classes in-studio-only and online-only, we’re giving ourselves the chance to focus only on the people directly in front of us – a group of folks sharing a contained space, whether that’s an online space or a physical one. Hybrid classes allow us to blend two worlds – virtual and IRL – to support a variety of folks in their practice. Some hybrid classes are recorded (marked as RECORDED HYBRID on the calendar); others aren’t. The gallery view of zoom participants is projected on the back wall of the studio, so the instructor can see everyone in class from any vantage point in the room. Zoom participants for hybrid classes will have a clear, front-row view of the instructor and will hopefully feel like they’re right there with the in-person attendees. We spent time honing our microphone and camera setup to bring the best experience for everyone whether they are in the studio or practicing from home. Online-only classes are recorded with the recordings available for 7 days. In-studio-only classes will incorporate more Great Yoga Wall® poses than hybrid classes, since not everyone has a Wall at home. Though, since some students do, our weekly Great Wall class will be hybrid.

The past 16 months have given us endless opportunities to makes decisions that blend risk management strategies with self-care with consideration for others. So many habits have shifted since March of 2020. Only you will know when you’ll be ready to come back to the studio. For us, even as we move forward, online options will continue to be a part of our studio offerings.

We’re so grateful for all the people who have helped us make it to this point: our business has survived 2020 and is still here in 2022. Thank you to the students who supported us in so many ways – both financially and energetically – since March 17, 2020 when we shifted to an online studio. Thank you to the property manager and owner of our building for displaying such compassion and understanding while working with us. Thank you to our teachers, demo models, and our inimitable virtual assistant, Sara Murphy, for coming together to form this new model of structural integrity as a studio. Welcome back, everyone, in whatever way you practice at Purna Yoga 828.