Our Story

Kaitlin Frady is a lifelong movement and functional anatomy nerd with an artist's soul. She is a dual-licensed Physical Therapist Assistant and Massage Therapist, as well as an NSCA Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist. Kaitlin started practicing massage therapy in 2012, and concurrently embarked on the adventure of a lifetime training to be a professional circus artist, aerialist, and contortionist (...it's a long story!).  As an artist-athlete immersed in a grueling training routine, she moved through several traumatic and chronic overuse injuries...yet, the show always went on (and she learned a lot through the process!). She coached circus arts for adult recreational and professional students for over 10 years, and currently enjoys gentle training just for fun. Kaitlin specializes in working with individuals managing hypermobility related issues, including hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (hEDS), Hypermobility Spectrum Disorders (HSD), POTS, and dysautonomia. She draws from a wide variety of tools and techniques in her practice, with the philosophy that there is no one-size-fits-all approach that works for every body. Kaitlin is available for 1:1 bodywork and movement sessions, leads her signature Zebra Strong classes for hypermobile folks twice a week, and teaches handstands on Thursdays at 6pm. Favorite Hands-On Techniques: - Myofascial release - Cupping & instrument-assisted soft tissue mobilization - Kinesiology taping - Craniosacral therapy Favorite Movement Modalities: - Functional strength & mobility - Body awareness & proprioception training - Injury prevention programming for athletes & artists - Calisthenics & bodyweight training - Floorwork & locomotive movement - Active flexibility

Being a Yoga practitioner and teacher for years, a lower back injury sent Kristin on a quest to dive deeper into the human body, which led her to study massage therapy at one of the top schools in the country -- the much-loved and missed Educating Hands in Miami, Florida. There she discovered her passion for exploring movement through bodywork and massage. Kristin has been a working massage therapist for over 15 years. She specializes in neuromuscular bodywork and assessment, which uses manual muscle testing to assess and then reprogram dysfunctional movement patterns using the body’s neuromuscular motor control system. For the last 7 years, Kristin has been working and learning alongside a collaborative team of Physical Therapists and Exercise Physiologists as a clinical massage therapist, working with patients managing sports injuries, pre- and post- surgical rehabilitation, and supporting patients’ general fitness and wellness needs. A treatment session with Kristin is not a "cookie cutter" massage experience; rather, it is an active and collaborative exploration of how your heroic body keeps you moving through space. Her bodywork sessions are based in both objective assessment and clinical intuition, viewing individual symptoms and holding patterns as parts of a whole. Favorite Hands-On Techniques: - Neuromuscular therapy - SMRT - Lymphatic drainage - Manual muscle testing & perturbation testing Favorite Movement Modalities: - Yoga - Mobility work

Liz is a licensed Massage Therapist and professional musician who blends mechanical skill and physiological knowledge with deep empathy to provide restorative, nonjudgmental, and trauma-informed care. She draws on years of experience as a Broadway pit musician to listen, attune, and hold space for healing. Liz strives to support creatives of all kinds to stay pain-free, embodied, and inspired. While enduring a rigorous touring schedule, Liz was fortunate enough to discover the benefits of massage, working to heal chronic overuse injuries and regulate an overstimulated nervous system. She also believes deeply in the psychological benefits of massage and hopes to bring her work to touch-starved populations. Liz loves the outdoors and playing music with her friends. She continues to gig in and around the Northeast on the pedal steel and the guitar. Liz's treatment style is grounded, deliberate and patient. She integrates targeted and pinpoint-specific therapeutic trigger point and deep tissue work with calming, flowy massage techniques for a profoundly balanced, nervous system-regulating session. Favorite Hands-On Techniques: - Gentle fascia mobilization - Trigger point release - Cupping & instrument-assisted soft tissue mobilization

Following a brief career as a violinist, ended and reevaluated after a several year struggle with Rheumatoid Arthritis, Noah Julian began a lifelong wholistic approach to personal health and wellness. His education and research over the past two decades has led to many areas of specialization, including those related to optimal human movement. Noah’s teaching largely involves Calisthenics (bodyweight strength training) coupled with the work and teaching of Nevine Michaan of Katonah Yoga®. Noah teaches his Architectural Movement and Small Group Strength Training classes twice weekly, and is available for private and semi-private yoga, strength and mobility training, and meditation coaching.

Alex Brazinski is a licensed acupuncturist and movement practitioner who teaches a combination of acrobatics, contemporary/modern floorwork, and mobility. Alex’s acupuncture practice focuses on sports injuries, pain management, mobility issues, and stress management. Alex is currently treating and educating in Philadelphia. Alex spent most of his 20s pursuing movement-based practices such as acrobatics, floorwork, yoga, and martial arts. Alex has studied intensively under Tom Weksler through Movement Archery and Zen Acrobatics, and now teaches acrobatics and floorwork classes at Urban Movement Arts in Philadelphia and Cardell Dance Studio. He performed as a dancer/acrobat with the Des Moines Metropolitan Opera in its production of The Love of Three Oranges in 2023. Alex premiered his first evening-length performance, “Where There is Hope, There is Light” at Cannonball Festival 2024 accompanied by musician Noah Julian. Alex’s love of acupuncture and mobility work began with his experience as an athlete in Division I cross country and track & field. Looking beyond traditional methods to treat his running-related injuries, Alex found relief and healing through sports and trigger-point-style acupuncture. Mobility and movement work provided additional balance to his training and recovery efforts and laid the groundwork for his interest in completing future certifications. Alex has a Master’s Degree (M.Ac.) in acupuncture from the WON Institute in Philadelphia, and completed all board exams and certification criteria from the National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (NCCAOM) in 2016. Alex is a certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) from the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA) since 2017, and in addition to being a certified yoga instructor (CYT) since 2013, Alex holds certifications in Functional Range Conditioning (FRC) 2016, Functional Range Assessment. 2018, and Functional Range Release Upper Extremities 2017.

Elliott Gittelsohn has been working in circus and movement since age 12, training at Circus Smirkus Academy, The Clown Conservatory, and with Mongolian contortionist Serchmaa Byamba. He has performed with companies including Capacitor, Celebrity Cruises, Sister Magic Productions, MOTH Poetic Circus, Vau de Vire Society, and Kinetic Arts Production. Elliott coaches contortion, flexibility, and hand balancing, and has directed and taught at programs including Circadium, Philadelphia School of Circus Arts, Kinetic Arts Center, San Francisco Circus Center, Hampshire College, and Circo Caribe. He holds a degree in Performing Arts from the LEAP Program, where he researched psychological stress and recovery in circus training and performance, and is the co-founder of 2nd Hand Circus. Elliott teaches the Tuesday 6pm handstand classes at Root & Branch weekly, and is also available for private and semi-private lessons upon request.

As Monica was transitioning away from her career in science education, she was falling in love with fitness, movement, and nutrition, mainly stemming from the desire to heal her own body. After a brief stint of traveling, she came back to the U.S. and dove into combining her background in education with her love of movement to start coaching group fitness classes and eventually 1-on-1 personal training. Under Mon Made Strong, Monica’s philosophy is built around nutrition and movement working harmoniously for a lifestyle of aging well. And after becoming a mom (and loving this new role!) in 2025, she has leaned into building her Mom Made Strong program, designed to support women and their journey into motherhood (preparing for pregnancy, pregnancy itself, postpartum, and beyond). Aside from coaching general movement for aging well and navigating motherhood, Monica also enjoys teaching self-defense. She is a Brazilian jiu-jitsu brown belt and applies techniques from the sport to help empower anyone to walk proudly in this world.

Luther Bangert is a professional circus artist local to Germantown. He started juggling twenty-one years ago, and has since performed in over twenty countries around the world. Luther has studied qi gong and dance with Daria Fain in her COREMOTION program since 2017. He currently teaches at studios and schools around Philadelphia, and performs around the USA and internationally. Luther is passionate about sharing his love for juggling and his unique style with everyone from novices to hobbyists to professionals.