Our Instructors
LeeAnna Maniace
Owner/ Vinyasa, Restorative Yoga
LeeAnna was born in Batavia, NY, where she studied ballet, tap, jazz, and contemporary dance at The Dancing Place Dance Academy for 16 years. By fate, she was introduced to the local yoga studio where she first learned about yoga, a world that encompassed not only the physical but the spiritual too. Here she studied Anusara Yoga.
She went on to graduate from the University of Buffalo with a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology and Health and Wellness. Throughout college, LeeAnna learned other forms of Yoga, such as Baron Baptise and Ashtanga (mostly Vinyasa-based). After graduating college, she moved to the Catskills and started a small organic vegetable farm in Liberty, NY, Sprouting Dreams Farm.
She seeks to share her passion for movement and health with individuals and groups in the community, wishing to increase the prosperity, health, and well-being of all.
With over a decade of yoga training and consistent teaching experience, LeeAnna now owns The Yoga Space Catskills in Hurleyville, NY. Her teaching style and most popular classes are creative alignment based vinyasa as well as restorative yoga.
Erin Dudley
Founder/ Senior Yoga Teacher, Workshops, Vinyasa, Chair Yoga, Gentle Hatha
Erin relocated with her family to the Catskill Region of NY State after 20+ years in the NYC dance and yoga community. She started practicing as a way to heal injuries and grow as a dance artist. Erin received her first certification in 1995 and began teaching yoga asana in 1996 she received an MFA in 2009 and served as faculty for Stony Brook University’s Center for Dance Movement and Somatic Learning until the birth of her son. Erin continues to lead workshops and contribute as a scholar and educator to Yoga Teacher Training throughout the USA and Canada.
“My practice and teaching instruction draws from love of movement, somatic therapies, kinesthetic anatomy, the investigative philosophy of Irmgard Bartenieff, the quiet passion of Astanga vinyasa, the rigorous intelligence of Iyengar Yoga and the knowledge that through movement we can renegotiate relationships with ourself and others. I offer gratitude for the steady guidance of Danielle Tarantola /Yoga Foundation, Krishnamacharya Yoga Mandarim, and my family at the Kula Yoga Project.
My classes are grounded in a lifetime of study, experiments, and practice. I honor no one guru but bow deeply to the ancestors for passing on the knowledge to her contemporaries that unrelentingly shine a light on personal agency through ethical compassionate teaching methodologies.”
Richard Gillett
Tai Chi
Richard Gillett is a medical doctor, author of the #1 bestselling book “IT’S A FREAKIN’ MESS: How to Thrive in Divisive Times,” and twenty-year practitioner of the Tai Chi 24 Yang Form.
Richard has led Tai Chi classes for ten years and is a passionate believer in the harmonization of body, mind, feeling and spirit.
Katelyn Ball
Vinyasa
Kate is 26 years old, born and raised in New Jersey. Recognizing the need to slow down, her and her fiancé moved to the Catskill Mountains 7 years ago, and have since planted roots.
Kate is a 200 hour RYT having received her certification locally at the Sivananda Yoga Ashram, having lived on site there for a month in the Summer of 2023. Upon graduating she immediately began teaching, and has been since. She considers herself to be passionate about inspiring others to find their own unique way of curating a playful and patient connection with their body & mind, doing so through yoga philosophy, postures, breathwork, and meditation. She hopes to be able to show her students the delicate balance of trial and error, ease and strength, & breath and movement through each of her uniquely structured classes involving every aspect of the Yoga Philosophy, guiding from 8 years of personal experience on her own yoga journey.
When Kate is not teaching yoga, she enjoys dedicating her spare time to assisting individuals with Autism and other complex disabilities. She works full time as a Wellness Program Coordinator for a local Holistic Wellness Center in Wurtsboro, NY, and you can also find her hiking the many paths and trails of the Catskills, writing, and spending time with her chihuahuas!
Lesley Lotto
Vinyasa
Lesley Lotto began practicing yoga more than 25 years ago in Los Angeles where she grew up. But it wasn't until she moved to Montana for a radio career that she began a regular and very personal practice. In Missoula, Lesley tried Hot Yoga (because it's freezing there!), then moved into a sincere appreciation for all styles and lineages of yoga. At that time, one of Lesley's teachers brought a 200 hour certification training to a yoga studio in Missoula from Prana Mandir Yoga of New York. It was a year of intense study into the history and philosophy of yoga, proper sequencing and learning to lead classes and events. Yoga Yay! was born in that training with three besties who loved practicing and "geeking out" on yoga so much we would say, "Yoga.. Yay!". Since then Lesley has done a 300hr. Bhakti Yoga training, Yoga Nidra training, Restorative training, became Reiki 1&2 certified, certified in Thai Yoga Bodywork and Kundalini Yoga and "Untrained and Retrained" answering the call of the Black Lives Matter movement.
Lesley has practiced or studied with Sondra Loring and Kelly Kamm, Guru Singh, Seane Corn, Rolf Gates, Bryan Kest, Sri Dharma Mittra, Dana Trixie Flynn, Rodney Yee, Colleen Saidman-Yee and Gurmukh. Lesley has an at-home yoga studio where she practices daily and offers private classes. She also produces newscasts for radio stations across the country for her other baby, Remote News Service, podcasts and plays guitar. She resides outside in the Catskills of New York.
Elysia Palmieri
Vinyasa, Core & Restore
Yoga first drew Elysia in with its unique balance of movement and self-reflection—a practice that encouraged her to look inward without judgment while also building physical strength and flexibility. What started as an attraction to the peaceful energy of her instructors and the depth of Eastern philosophies became something much more personal. When she began practicing more regularly in 2013 while living in Southern California, Elysia found herself not only feeling better physically and emotionally, but also becoming more aligned in her lifestyle and relationships.
Over time, Elysia's yoga practice allowed her to cultivate confidence, clarity, and authenticity in all aspects of life. She teaches because she wants to share this same sense of connection and empowerment with others. Her classes focus on fluid energetics and resilience, helping students release limiting narratives and step into greater awareness and self-trust. She integrates movement, breathwork, and mindfulness techniques to break unhelpful patterns, shift mindset, and raise vibrational energy, encouraging students to take intentional steps toward elevating their lives.
Elysia completed 200 hours of Hatha & Vinyasa training with Lotus Seed Yoga in Portland, Oregon, 150 hours of Vinyasa training with Frog Lotus Yoga in Andalusia, Spain, and 100 hours of Kundalini Yoga training with Kia Miller in Rishikesh, India. Beyond the mat, Elysia feels most at home in nature. She is a sun-seeker who loves to spend time with her husband and dogs. She enjoys hiking, paddling, seeing live music, cooking fresh, local food, and creating meaningful connections with friends old and new.
Bhadra Legari
Guided Meditation and Group Reiki Healing
Bhadra is an empath counselor, reiki master, and certified crystal healer. As an empath with natural intuitive abilities, she’s passionate about helping other empaths obtain balance, learn to manage their sensitivities, and uncover their true authentic selves. She has a master’s in psychology, is an advanced certified Hibiscus Moon crystal practitioner and a certified Usui Reiki Master Teacher. She’s been following a spiritual path and practicing meditation and yoga for over 30 years. She currently lives in Woodbourne, NY part of the year and Henderson, NV part of the year with her family and pets. Bhadra offers Angelic Reiki and Empath Counseling by appointment as well as Group Guided Meditations, Crystal Grid Group Healings, and Full Moon Ceremonies. She also teaches various workshops and Usui Reiki I & II Certifications.
Elenie Duffy
Crystal Bowl Sound Healing
Elenie was born and raised in the beautiful Catskills Mountains. From an early age, Elenie always knew she wanted to help people. This lead her to be a nurse. She practiced and worked as a nurse for the past 11 years. About five years ago is when Elenie began her spirituality journey. She was always fascinated by Tarot cards and she began to study the art. A few years into her spiritual journey she realized she wasn’t satisfied with her work as a nurse. She wanted to help and heal people still, but in a different way than the healthcare system would allow her. She wanted to take a more holistic approach. She wanted to share her healing abilities with others. This lead her to a new journey of spiritual practice. She is now certified as a Chakra & Crystal Healer, Reiki Practitioner, and Sound Healer.
Marina Gregory
Pilates
Marina Gregory teaches Pilates, Gyrotonic, and The Egoscue methods of physical training.
She has taught worldwide, including at The Moscow Art Theater School in Russia, The University of Turin in Italy, NY University in NY, and USC and Stanford in California.
She was trained and certified to teach Pilates by Romana Kryzanowska, The Master teacher and designated inheritor of the Pilates system from Joe Pilates.
Marina taught for Romana for three years before opening her own studio in NYC.
Originally a ballet dancer, she began training in Pilates at 13 years old.