SPY Pilates formerly Premier Pilates Sharon Graystone and Joe Ferraro are proud to continue the legacy of Elin Benson and her incredible studio, Premier Pilates. Sadly Elin passed in February 2017, her passion and pride in her studio and classical pilates will be missed. As the new owners of the studio now named SPY Pilates we plan to continue all that Elin had envisioned and add our own ideas and concepts to make SPY the premier pilates studio in Scottsdale. We have renovated the studio and added additional Gratz reformers and Gratz Tower reformers as well as a new private instruction room.

We have retained many of the previous instructors and added new highly skilled instructors to accommodate the many scheduled classes that are now available. We offer our very own app for ease of scheduling and purchasing of classes. Please come in and try our studio and let SPY be a part of your wellness journey.

Michael is a longtime veteran of the Pilates Method and internationally recognized Pilates Master Teacher, presenter, educator, consultant, and innovator. Michael is a certified Pilates Instructor, Pilates Teacher Trainer, Personal Trainer, gravitypilates® trainer and gravitygroup:strength trainer, Reiki Practitioner and Spiraldynamik® Level 1. He is also a representative for Spiraldynamik® in the fields of Pilates and Movement in the USA. He is a former performer, with Broadway National and International credits as a performer, dance-captain, stage manager, and resident director. He was first introduced to the Pilates method in the early 1980s as a dancer in NYC.His main teacher/mentor was Romana Kryzanowska and he was a Teacher Trainer for her original international certification program “The Pilates Studio®” in NYC. Michael’s interpretation of the Pilates Method today is an accumulation of the work from Joseph Pilates, the Pilates Elders and influenced by other modalities and science. Together with Ton Voogt he set up several independent Pilates certification programs internationally, created the TRIADBALL™, manual and DVDs and collaborated with Physical Therapists to integrate the Pilates method into patient-based therapy programs. Michael is also a “Distinguished Teacher” for PilatesAnytime. His personal clientele has included many A-list celebrities.

Ton is a longtime veteran of the Pilates Method and internationally recognized Pilates Master Teacher, presenter, educator, consultant, and innovator. Ton has a Bachelor of Science degree in Physical Education and is a certified Pilates Instructor, Pilates Teacher Trainer, Personal Trainer, ACE Group Fitness Instructor, gravitypilates® trainer, gravitygroup:strength trainer and Spiraldynamik® Level 1. He is also a representative for Spiraldynamik® in the fields of Pilates and Movement in the USA. He is a former member of the Dutch National Gymnastics team, and former performer with International stage, film, and television credits. Ton was first introduced to Pilates in the late 1980s in Vienna from the perspective of a fitness professional first and a performer second. His main teacher/mentor was Romana Kryzanowska and he was a Teacher Trainer for her original international certification program “The Pilates Studio®” in NYC. Ton’s interpretation of the Pilates Method today is an accumulation of the work from Joseph Pilates, the Pilates Elders and influenced by other modalities and science. Together with Michael Fritzke he set up several independent Pilates certification programs internationally, created the TRIADBALL™, manual and DVDs and collaborated with Physical Therapists to integrate the Pilates method into patient-based therapy programs. Ton is also a “Distinguished Teacher” for PilatesAnytime. His personal clientele has included many A-list celebrities. Currently he works with team members of the Arizona Cardinals and team members of the San Diego Padres during spring training.

Jhessika earned a degree in Architecture and holds a certification in Classical Pilates, which makes her an Architect of the Body. She earned her certification through the Pilates Center of Las Vegas , under the direction of Elena Bartley, 2nd generation of Joseph Pilates. Jhessika is a 3rd generation (Level 4) teacher and can train advanced students to obtain their teacher certification program.

Jhessika is trained in Mat work, Reformer, Cadillac, Wunda Chair, Spine Corrector, Barrel and accessories, she has 10 years of advanced student , teacher, yoga practitioner, and aerial dance skill sets.

Bilingual English-Spanish sessions while she had her studio in Lake Chapala, Mexico. (International Experience) Drawn to Pilates by a back injury, Jhessika has experienced working with injuries and the methods most suitable for rehabilitation. Jhessika also works with pre and post natal students helping them reach their goals.

Dedicated and passionate about her clientele, is the best way to describe her, she aims at keeping the body limber and strong. Jhessika helps students get the proper alignments and benefits of the method, in their pursuit to better understand and control the wellness of their bodies, thru the practice of the Pilates Method.

She is currently working on obtaining her Masters in Pilates Education with Elena Bartley at Pilates Center of Las Vegas.

Lauren was first certified in New York City through Romana Kryanowska in 1995. Romana was one of Joe’s elders to pass on the method of study. In 2005, Lauren received another certification from Power Pilates. She has also studied through the IMX method of Pilates. Lauren enjoys teaching people and seeing the progress they can make through this method. She also still enjoys studying ballet, hiking and learning any new method of movement.

I decided to become a teacher after pilates completely changed my life. In December of 2010 I was in a serious car accident. I had multiple injuries including a broken bone in my back, a shifted chest plate, and torn rib tissue. For the first couple years after my accident I did not seem to have any lasting effects on my body; however the injuries ended up catching up to me. I found myself unable to walk for more than 20 minutes without experiencing debilitating pain in my back and down the right side of my body. I would actually almost collapse after a 20 minute walk. After suffering through the pain for over 18 months, working out with a personal trainer in an attempt to strengthen my back and having multiple x-rays and scans done I decided to try something different, pilates. I had always been a very active person. I loved working out but mainly did cardio and weight training. I started taking pilates classes and within one month noticed something amazing; I was no longer experiencing pain on a daily basis. I continued taking classes every day and continued to be pain free. An added bonus was I started to see major changes in my body. I was leaning out my muscle and was gaining flexibility. I decided at that time that I wanted to be able to bring pilates to other people and began my teacher training in classical pilates. I absolutely love teaching pilates and enjoy watching my clients make connections with their bodies that they never had before.

Nancy is a former educator who decided to combine her love of teaching and learning with a passion for Pilates. An avid equestrian with low back problems, she began practicing Pilates thirteen years ago as a way to rebalance her muscles, strengthen her core and create body awareness to improve her riding. The benefits she experienced created a desire to learn more and compelled her to complete extensive coursework to become a Stott Pilates certified instructor. She has an on-going special interest in the use of Pilates for rehabilitation and sport specific conditioning and believes that ANYbody and EVERYbody can improve their strength, functional mobility and agility through consistent Pilates practice.

Arden was first introduced to Pilates by enrolling in a class in the dance department at UCLA. She immediately noticed what wonderful cross-training it was for her dance, as well as how it improved her posture any day-to-day wellbeing. Several years after completing her double major in dance and English Literature she realized how much she missed moving around every day which brought her to a teacher training program at Pilates Sports Center. Arden brings nearly two-decades of experience and passion for movement vocabularies, including modern dance, ballet, dance improvisation techniques such as Release Technique and Gaga, Muay Thai, and Yoga to Pilates, which she sees as one of the most healthful and efficient yet fun forms of movement anyone can do. When she is not dancing or in the Pilates studio, she loves to paint and hang out with her cats, Moonstone and Stardust.

Balancing the busy schedules of 3 kids, a full time career and finding time to fulfill my passion for health and fitness is not always easy. But, through Barre and Yoga, I was able to find a great work out that satisfies mind, body and soul all in one! My desire to help others achieve their goals is what lead me to teaching. My teaching and practice philosophy is to really challenge and create change while still being gentle with the body. Teaching allows me to share that practice with others. Great play lists, with a diverse mix of music styles, along-side fun but challenging sequences create a great energy in my classes. You can expect to leave feeling like you lengthened, strengthened and worked to your personal edge, with a strong focus on alignment and safety.