SPOTIFY PLAYLIST: "MOVES x LIVE THE PROCESS"

Our names are: 

Marisa Competello and Lauren Gerrie.

We live in: 

We’re Manhattanites through and through. Marisa lives on the Lower East Side and Lauren lives in Soho.

We’re known for being: 

Multidisciplinary creatives. Marisa is the designer and creator behind Meta Flora, a New York floral studio. Lauren is a private chef and figure model. 

We’re talking about: 

Movement is the construct of our lives—be it as we physically hustle through our daily professional routines or in a sea of people shifting, swaying, grooving at a nightclub. Dance is movement and, for us both, the true source of authenticity and joy. MOVES—our dance class—is the expression of that passion and the vehicle we use to share that love with others.

You can find it at:

We teach anywhere between two and four times a month. We post all scheduled classes on our IG @movespurejoy. We now teach Downtown at Gibney, Uptown at City Center and in LA at MiModa. We are often asked about online content. As of now, we have not taken MOVES in that direction, but we are open to what the future has in store.

Before we started practicing this, we were:

We are dancers. Always and forever.

Our interest was sparked when:  

Our class is inspired by our friend and teacher, the infamous Ryan Heffington. We wanted to create a similar opportunity for ourselves and others in NYC. A community-focused, all-level dance class.

The idea behind it is: 

The structure of MOVES is based on a classical jazz dance class: stretching, cardio, across the floor, choreography. But we wanted to create a safe place for people to feel good, feel their bodies and feel free. Our style is more sensually rooted—body rolls and “hair-ography” are abundant. We constantly encourage MOVERS to engage with others and themselves in a more connected and present way. The pure joy achieved from working hard, laughing, screaming and expressing yourself through movement is the best gift we could give or receive! 

The high post-class is unparalleled and addictive.

My favorite lesser-known detail is:

Smile. Laugh. Embrace yourself and others.

It’s so important to move because:

Dance is life.

Movement is not just about the physical because:

The physical body and mind are connected; they thrive together. Nurture the body and the soul will rejoice.

The words I live by are:

MOVES equals pure joy.

One truth that is so important, but people don’t always realize is:

You get what you give. The potential to give is so huge, so imagine how big the love is on the receiving end!