26. Edna Reinhardt on yoga, mindfulness and legacy in dance!

Edna Reinhardt is a very special human. I instantly fell in love with her as she approached me across the lobby of the hotel I was staying at. She’s a tiny frame with a big aura. Edna is the principal and founder of Over the Moon Studios in Castlemaine Victoria and has been teaching yoga and creative dance to students from 2½ to 20 years old since 1975. Incredible. From a background in contemporary dance and drama, Edna studied yoga and creative dance with the esteemed educator, Dorothea Mangiamele at Mangala Studios in Melbourne from the early 1970s through to the 1980s who focussed on the concept of mindful movement in improvisation. This association profoundly influenced Edna’s approach to yoga and dance education. Edna is the author of the Yoga Education Resources Series. This yoga syllabus informs the yoga education at Over the Moon and is used in many schools and therapeutic settings around the world. Edna treats every class like a ‘work of art’ and her teaching style takes skill, craft and an enormous amount of time and energy. For this reason alone I respect her process immensely. The way that Edna teaches is not only enriching for the students, but any the teachers who orbit this remarkable woman. We cover many topics about contemporary dance, movement, yoga and the importance of a studio philosophy. However it’s the question, what are you curious about right now Edna and what keeps you motivated that intrigued me the most… Edna is passionate and obsessed with her legacy. A topic I’ve been thinking a lot about lately. The concept of what’s left when I’m gone and who continues the work I’m so passionately doing. I’ve always approached the topic from an archival point of view… Take this podcast for example. It makes me smile to imagine a student when I’m long gone consuming these podcast episodes with the care that someone in this day and age might play a record. But Edna has a different plan. She’s investing time and energy into educating the next generation of teachers in her orbit and I must admit, during the little time I spent with her, I also felt like a student sitting across from the master. Enjoy this very special episode with my new friend Edna. www.balancedballerinas.com IG @BALANCEDBALLERINAS