About

Before a performance, my palms would sweat, my heart would race, and I’d feel so buzzed I couldn’t sit still. Afterwards, while I’d smile and laugh at the bar with friends, I’d be shaking on the inside and ready to run home and shut myself in my room. Performances began to feel like personal emotional marathons and production runs felt like roller coaster rides punctuated by extreme energetic highs and lows.

On off days, I’d be able to reestablish some sense of personal balance only to find myself turned upside down again on the next show day. Worst of all, the sense of joy I found in performing had become overshadowed by my fear of these after effects.

Wanting to understand more and looking for resources and support with this, I enrolled in a yoga teacher training program. Yoga was a game-changer for me. Through physical practice, meditation and energy work, I learned how to manage my anxiety, establish energetic boundaries and stay grounded and connected to myself. It helped me so much - and I knew it would help other too. 

In my work as a director, I had noticed that many performers struggled with these same issues that I experienced. In many cases, performers would come to me after rehearsals or shows asking me for techniques to help them with this. I also became curious about the experiences of performers outside the world of acting, and began talking to dancers, musicians, athletes and company leaders about their experiences with performing. Turns out, we all struggle with similar issues. 

So I dove deeper into yoga, meditation and energy work. I began developing my own exercises and practices, incorporating into my work as a director, offering workshops and coaching performers privately.

Now, I'm fully dedicated to this work, helping performers of all types manage stress, find balance in their lives and stay connected with their authentic selves. I feel privileged to have coached artists, athletes and leaders in my home base of Toronto, ON and online throughout the world.

I've also grateful for the opportunity to explore this work of performance & wellness through writing on my blog, as a featured writer for publications like Intermission Magazine and Elephant Journal and through my upcoming e-book on post-performance recovery. 

I know first-hand that we can grow through our challenges as performers and find solutions so we can step out in front of our audiences with strength, authenticity and ease. 

I'm excited to share this work with you!

 

Mairin coaches performers using body & movement based methods and meditation techniques to help them prepare for and recover from the stress and intensity of performing. She also works with performers in need of a refresh to find focus and precision in their performing careers. 

Her clients in include actors, dancers, musicians, athletes and leaders & changemakers who spend significant time presenting in front of audiences. She has led workshops on yoga for performing, performance preparation and post-performance recovery at Canadian Stage, Toronto Fringe Festival, Hillside Festival, Ankh Yoga and Peel District School Board. 

Mairin is the author of the Five Winds Blog, where she writes about performance & wellness, and offers tips and ideas on how to stay balanced and healthy while living the life of a performer. Her writing on performance & wellness has been featured in Intermission Magazine and Elephant Journal. She is currently writing an e-book on post-performance recovery. 

Mairin holds an HBA in Theatre Performance from the University of Toronto. She is a certified yoga instructor in Hatha, Restorative, Yin and Chakra yoga and a Mindfulness Meditation teacher. She served for 7 years as the Artistic Director of Glasswater Theatre, a Toronto, ON based independent theatre company committed to fostering new methods of performance creation and exploring the intersection between reality and theatricality. She has worked in Toronto and abroad as an actor, director and arts administrator.

Mairin is currently based in Toronto, ON where she coaches performers in person, and online throughout the world.