What do you love about teaching Pilates? Where did you take your training and who was the educator?
KG: I love meeting and helping others with their movement acquisition and also overcome their pain. I was trained by Brent Anderson and Cynthia McGhee in 1998 here in NYC when my husband, Bob Turner, hosted the Polestar series at his physical therapy studio.
What are your current inspirations? What do you love about them?
KG: I am deeply inspired by music, especially yogic chants. I am enthralled by the long history, the storytelling and the symbolism of the work. I also appreciate the flexibility in the interpretation of the stories and the music.
I am deeply inspired by my dance students and clients. Witnessing someone’s movement journey is a privilege and honor for me.
My husband of 20 years is an incredible inspiration to me. He is a truly gifted healer and mentor to young clinicians. He was raised on a farm and can literally fix or heal anything with his hands. I love that Bob recently began studying guitar. He plays every night before bed, no matter how tired he is.
Why Pilates? How did you find the practice?
KG: Pilates is very integral to the Nikolais/Louis Dance Technique floor barre. When I was performing with the Nikolais/Louis Dance Company, I dove deeper into the technique by studying Pilates on the apparatus. Pilates also helped me stave off injuries while I was touring.
What do you hope to convey in your teaching?
KG: Safety, support, compassion and encouragement
Where would you love to vacation?
KG: Fiji and Bora Bora while I am still willing to be seen in a bathing suit!
What is your favorite Quote? How do you live, embody and apply this?
KG: I have two that always play like a loop in my mind’s eye…
“If you’re not going to do it right, don’t do it at all.” – Benedicto Gibilisco (My Biological Father). I interpret this as, always offer your best effort, with an open heart and take pride in all of your work.
“Some teachers use their classes to exercise their own egos…Basically a good teacher feeds the class, and a bad one feeds from it.” – Murray Louis (My Dance Father), Inside Dance
Describe your movement style?
KG: Focused, passionate and dedicated
What is your favorite apparatus or favorite way to move? What do you love about it?
KG: I love any apparatus that challenges me, makes me laugh at myself and forces me out of my habit. Right now, I am experimenting with integrating the Oov, resistive discs and squishy ball into Pilates and Yoga exercises.
What are you reading or learning about?
KG: I dove into Deepka Chopra’s, “Seven Laws of Spiritual Success,” after our inaugural Polestar Retreat. Alexander Bohlander offered us a class integrating the 7 Laws. As soon as I got home, I purchased the book. I read it every day, like a bible, to set me up and also to offer gratitude and perspective for my life.
How does Pilates inform your profession?
KG: Pilates informs everything I see, everything I do and everything I experience. I am so grateful for how our Polestar Family exemplifies life-ling learning. You will NEVER see a PoleSTAR sitting on the floor during anyone’s class! Everyone is participating and learning from one another, no matter what level of education they have, no matter who the teacher is, no matter what the material being covered. We are encouraged to develop our own creative signature in our teaching and to hold each other up as we learn from one another. There is nothing else like it in the world!
You can find Kim @movement_colab and MOVEMENT COLab
and @5pointpt
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