Romana Kryzanowska
Romana Kryzanowska was a student of Joseph Pilates and his wife Clara at their studio on Eighth Avenue in New York. After the death of Joseph Pilates in 1968, Clara Pilates continued the studio for a few more years, and in 1970 Romana Kryzanowska became the director of what was by that time called "The Pilates Studio." She continues to teach today as Joseph Pilates' "oldest living disciple".[1]
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[edit] Biography
Romana Kryzanowska was born in Detroit in 1923, the only child of artist parents, and studied ballet as a child. At age 17, while studying at George Balanchine’s School of American Ballet, she suffered an ankle injury, and was taken by Blanchine to Joseph Pilates to see if exercise rather than an operation would resolve the problem. The exercises were a success, and she continued to study with Pilates. "Before I knew it", she said, "I was named a helper, which meant I didn’t have to pay anymore."[2] In 1944 she married Pablo Mejia and moved to Peru, where she danced and taught the Pilates technique. Her two children, Paul and Sari, were born in Peru. Returning to the US in 1958, she began working again with Joseph and Clara Pilates at their studio in New York City. She also taught ballet.
Romana and her daughter continue to operate Joseph Pilates' original studio. Pilates Master teacher Jay Grimes believes that nobody knows Joseph Pilates’ work better than Kryzanowska.[3] Other students of Joseph and Clara Pilates, including Kathy Grant and Lolita San Miguel (who were awarded New York certificates to teach Pilates in 1967), Ron Fletcher (who popularised Pilates in Los Angeles beginning in 1970), and many others, carried the Pilates method to other cities and countries.[4]
[edit] Controversy
Although Classical Pilates has been defined as "The exact exercises and ideas that Joe Pilates and his wife Clara taught to Romana Kryzanowska"[5], the court decision in 2000 that eliminated the possibility of trademarking the Pilates name[6][7] resulted in many variants of the Pilates method, and created controversy as to what is meant by a "certified" Pilates instructor.[8]
[edit] Publications
The Joseph H. Pilates Archive Collection: Photographs, Writings and Designs, Sean P. Gallagher and Romana Kryzanowska, ISBN: 1891696130
The Pilates Method of Body Conditioning - An Introduction to the Core Exercises, Sean P. Gallagher and Romana Kryzanowska, ISBN: 1891696084
The Complete Writings of Joseph H. Pilates, Joseph Pilates, Romana Kryzanowska, ISBN: 1891696157
[edit] References
- ^ http://www.naturaljourneys.com/romana_s/142.htm
- ^ http://www.ideafit.com/fitness-library/romana-kryzanowska-pilates
- ^ IDEA Fitness Journal, 4, Number 10
- ^ http://www.ultimatebody.com/Methodhistory.html
- ^ http://pilatescore.wordpress.com/2010/02/19/defining-classical-pilates/
- ^ http://www.pilates.com/BBAPP/V/company/press-room/Release-Lawsuit.html
- ^ http://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=15161822239900295431&hl=en&as_sdt=2&as_vis=1&oi=scholarr
- ^ Siri Galliano, http://pilatescore.wordpress.com/2010/03/08/siri-galliano-guest-blog/
[edit] Additional Sources
- Romana's Pilates Official Home of Romana Kryzanowska, protégé of Joseph Pilates
- Pilates Information independent website
- New York 1 Broadcast "World Famous Instructor Holds Annual Convention" By Roger Clark - August 4, 2006
