Liz has been a “mover and a shaker” all her life.  Naturally drawn to dance from the time she was a
baby, Liz has had an ongoing love and commitment to movement.   

Liz was always involved in some form of movement all her life.  From ages 5 to 10, she enjoyed ballet;
in high school, Liz studied modern dance and she performed every chance she could.  The connection
between physical movement and emotional compassion and caring has always been evident to Liz.  Liz
received her BA in human services from Northeastern University , Boston in 2001 and has worked for
health care organizations.  At the same time, she began yoga classes and studied with yoga teacher
Stefani Reitter and Kripalu/Iyengar teacher Billie Jo Joy in Boston and Cambridge .

Liz became engrossed in the Iyengar method as it  brought more awareness to her body's alignment and
presence. As a modern dancer and performance artist, she was always aware of posture and the body
mechanics in dance, but realized there is a deeper aspect. Something that is a form of expression
comes from the inside, from our  emotions, fears, desires and struggles. Liz believes yoga can guide us
through all of this in our daily lives as we grow and change.

In 2002, Liz became involved in performance art and butoh, a form of movement that emerged out of
post WWII Japan founded by Tasumi Hijikata and Kazuo Uno. Yoga played a big part in these movement
techniques for Liz, as this form of dance manifests from things inside us that we see and experience
outside of us.  She trained with Deborah Butler performed with her group, Kitsune, in "Synapse"
(Cambridge, MA) and "Calling from Here" (Art Beat, Cambridge, MA).  She also danced in Ellen Godena's
piece "Static" at the Berwick Theatre in Roxbury, MA.

From one coast to another, Liz moved to San Francisco in 2003. She completed a 500 hour yoga teacher
training at the Iyengar Institute of San Francisco in 2006 and continues to study under Iyengar yoga
teacher, Nora Burnett.  Liz is a registered yoga teacher through Yoga Alliance.  She also graduated from
the Holistic Health Practitioner program at the World School of Massage and Holistic Healing Arts in 2008
and is completing the Professional Massage Therapy program.

Liz also performs with The Black Stone Ensemble, a butoh-based performance group, formed in the
summer of 2005 (www.butohsf/bse.org).  Performance credits: Yugen Presents "Myopia"; "iHuman" group-
produced; Women on the Way Festival "Myopia"; Resident Artists' Workshop (RAW) "Into the Mind of
Edward D. Wood, Jr.; "Limbo: What Happens Between" with Bob Webb and the Bare Bones Butoh series.

She enjoys teaching yoga as well as sharing her love and experience with the practice. Liz brings a
gentle, patient approach to her classes and breaks down the poses for students in order to fully
understand the benefits and feel the poses' affects throughout the body.

"If one is patient with oneself when learning the poses, then the intelligence of the body engages in the
actions so it can begin to rest in the pose with no effort, allowing the mind to become quiet."
About Liz
"Myopia" March 2006
Photo by Eric Kerr
(Liz Filippone, Allison Wyper)
"Myopia" March 2006
Photo by Eric Kerr
(Liz Filippone, Bob Webb)
Bare Bones Butoh #4, July 2006
"iHuman" (as work in progress)
Photo by Molly Barrons
Bare Bones Butoh #1, July 2005
Pre-Black Stone Ensemble
Duet with Wolfgang Heinle (not pictured)
Photo by Ian Winters
"Any Day Now"
By Ann Carlson, July &
August 2000
Franklin Park Zoo, Dorchester, MA. Photo from NY Times feature.
(I'm pictured far right behind baby carriage.
"Calling from Here" @ Art Beat. Kitsune Butoh
(Pictured left to right: Deborah Butler & Liz
Filippone) Davis Square Cambridge, MA July 2003
Photo by Erika Hahn
Photo by Amy Kokta
"Purge" Installation 4: Birth (November 2008)
BBB12. Photo by Joe Filippone
"Purge" Installation 4: Birth
November 2008. BBB12.
Photo by Joe Filippone