Mirea Sharifi
Mirea Sharifi has been teaching for over 20 years. She served as Assistant Director/Choreographer for the internationally acclaimed group, Up with People from 1997-1999, and on the dance faculty at Ballet Arts from 2001-2010. She holds a Master of Fine Arts in Dance from the University of Arizona School of Dance and founded BodyQuest Pilates in 2002.
Mirea is a Pilates Method Alliance Certified Pilates Teacher. A student of Pilates since 1999, Mirea has studied with Pilates Master Teachers, Ron Fletcher, Michele Larsson, John White, Madeline Black, Ruth Alpert and is most recently, a Graduate of the Polestar Pilates Transition Program. She has completed Body Reading/Posture and Movement, and Anatomy Trains for the Movement Therapist with Tom Myers, author of Anatomy Trains: Myofascial Meridians for Manual and Movement Therapists.
Mirea is a Pilates Method Alliance Certified Pilates Teacher. A student of Pilates since 1999, Mirea has studied with Pilates Master Teachers, Ron Fletcher, Michele Larsson, John White, Madeline Black, Ruth Alpert and is most recently, a Graduate of the Polestar Pilates Transition Program. She has completed Body Reading/Posture and Movement, and Anatomy Trains for the Movement Therapist with Tom Myers, author of Anatomy Trains: Myofascial Meridians for Manual and Movement Therapists.
Cathy Blodgett
Cathy Blodgett has studied dance and exercise extensively since childhood. She earned a BA from Colorado Women's College and has studied modern and ballet at the University of Colorado, Colorado Ballet, Ballet New Mexico, Pacific Northwest Ballet and Ballet Tucson. Cathy has been riding Dressage for about 20 years. Classical Dressage is a lovely, precise dance with an equine partner. Pilates is a highly effective discipline for rider conditioning.
Introduced to Pilates 12 years ago, Cathy is a Pilates Method Alliance Certified Pilates Teacher. She received her primary training at Pilates Seattle, John White Movement and most recently with Cha Cha Guerrero. In 2008, Cathy came across a copy of Bruce King's (first generation Pilates Instructor and Nicolai and Cunningham dancer) book "Rule of the Bones" 1991, which was out of print. Cathy worked with Mr. King's attorney and executor to get the book republished. For inquiries about the book, please e-mail us at BodyQuest@cox.net.
Introduced to Pilates 12 years ago, Cathy is a Pilates Method Alliance Certified Pilates Teacher. She received her primary training at Pilates Seattle, John White Movement and most recently with Cha Cha Guerrero. In 2008, Cathy came across a copy of Bruce King's (first generation Pilates Instructor and Nicolai and Cunningham dancer) book "Rule of the Bones" 1991, which was out of print. Cathy worked with Mr. King's attorney and executor to get the book republished. For inquiries about the book, please e-mail us at BodyQuest@cox.net.
Stephanie Christenson
Stephanie Christenson has a Bachelors Degree in Kinesiology from Penn State. She has 12 years experience in the fitness field as a personal trainer and group exercise instructor. Stephanie is a graduate of the Polestar Pilates Comprehensive Teacher Training Program. She has worked with a variety of populations and fitness levels including pre and postnatal, Parkinson's Disease, Active Older Adults and teens. She has managed a variety of fitness programs in the Tucson community, and is currently the Director of Personal Trainers at Mid-Valley Athletic Club. Stephanie is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) through the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA). She graduated from Yoga Connections's Yoga teacher training program in 2001 and is a Registered Yoga Teacher with the Yoga Alliance.
Nicole Capdarest
Nicole Capdarest has been a teacher of dance, gymnastics and Pilates for over 20 years. She is a lover of sports and movement of all kinds. Nicole has enjoyed participating in many competitive sports and other activities, including competing at the elite level in rhythmic gymnastics and performing with former Tucson-based aerial dance company, O-T-O Dance. Nicole did her Pilates certification training with master teacher John White. She is a Pilates Method Alliance Certified Pilates Teacher, having passed the highest testing standards for Pilates professionals on all Pilates exercises and equipment. Nicole is also a graduate of Stanford University and has a Master's from the University of Arizona. She enjoys working with Pilates students of all ages and abilities, especially athletes and those with physical challenges.
Phoebe Jenkins
Phoebe is a certified holistic Health Coach, IntenSati fitness leader and professional massage therapist. She received her training as a Health Coach from the Institute for Integrated Nutrition, a cutting-edge Health Coach Training Program. Her studies focused on over 100 dietary theories, practical lifestyle management techniques, and innovative coaching methods with some of the world's top health and wellness experts including: Dr. Andrew Weil, Director of the Arizona Center for Integrative Medicine; Dr. Deepak Chopra, leader in the field of mind-body medicine; Dr. David Katz, Director of Yale University's Prevention Research Center; Dr. Walter Willett, Chair of Nutrition at Harvard University and Geneen Roth, bestselling author and expert on emotional eating.
Phoebe studied IntenSati fitness in New York City, received her group fitness teaching certification through AFAA in Miami, FL, and graduated from the Arizona School of Integrated Studies in professional massage therapy and body work. She is available for massage treatments, health coaching and IntenSati group fitness classes at BodyQuest Pilates. Sign-up for a complimentary 50-Minute Health Consultation Integrative Nutrition Certified Health Coach | Phoebe Jenkins
Phoebe studied IntenSati fitness in New York City, received her group fitness teaching certification through AFAA in Miami, FL, and graduated from the Arizona School of Integrated Studies in professional massage therapy and body work. She is available for massage treatments, health coaching and IntenSati group fitness classes at BodyQuest Pilates. Sign-up for a complimentary 50-Minute Health Consultation Integrative Nutrition Certified Health Coach | Phoebe Jenkins
Jenna Johnson
Jenna Johnson graduated as a full scholarship student from Harid Conservatory for Dance. She attended Indiana University, also on scholarship, before joining Atlanta Ballet. In 1995, she left for Europe, fulfilling a desire to travel while pursuing her career in dance. She was a soloist with the Romanian National Opera Ballet in Bucharest from 1995-1997. She then joined the Oleg Danovski Ballet Theater as a principal dancer in 1997, where she formed a successful partnership with her future husband, Daniel Precup. She returned to the United States in 2003 to dance with Oakland Ballet. In 2004, Jenna joined Ballet Tucson. As a professional dancer, Jenna was first introduced to the Pilates Method as a form of rehabilitation. She has since found that it's benefits are far more comprehensive and enjoys exploring a method that incorporates the principles of her dance training.
Frances Mikesell
Frances Mikesell, a Tucson native, began her movement journey in gymnastics and dance at a very young age, eventually leaving the gymnastics world to devote her time to dance. She studied, taught and performed with A Time to Dance Studio for 9 years and Ballet Arizona. Subsequently, she began her studies at Ballet Arts. It was there that she was first introduced to the Pilates Method under the instruction of Mirea Sharifi. Excited to have found a new form of movement and a method to understand the body, Frances has been a student of Pilates for 9 years.
In 2002, Frances toured through Germany, France, Italy, Ohio and Michigan as part of the Blue Lake Fine Arts International Exchange Program, dedicated to promoting peace and understanding through the universal language of the arts.
In 2002, Frances toured through Germany, France, Italy, Ohio and Michigan as part of the Blue Lake Fine Arts International Exchange Program, dedicated to promoting peace and understanding through the universal language of the arts.
Miranda Stanton
Miranda returned to Tucson after a career in dance, Off-Broadway theatre and teaching movement. Her personal yoga practice developed after incurring typical injuries from dance. It was the therapeutic value that first drew her to yoga. Only after receiving her certification did she realize that yoga is something more than a competitive sport, purely result driven. This process made its way into daily living- a sort of promise to get the most out of the moment. Currently, Miranda is active in the canine world as handler, walker & Tellington-Touch Practitioner.
