Inside The Terra Studio & Pilates Club, a new invitation-only workout in New York City

A new “it” class is gaining popularity among New York City Pilates enthusiasts, and getting a seat on the reformer may be harder than snagging a table at Torrisi.

After teaching at Forma Pilates, other Georgia Wood Murphy, 28, a popular invitation-only pilates studio in New York City, has opened Thera Studio & Pilates Club in downtown Manhattan. After operating out of a temporary space for the first few months, Thera is now officially a permanent studio. The studio address, like the class location, is invitation-only.

Wood-Murphy, who was born in Australia and grew up in the Dallas suburbs, fell in love with Pilates after graduating from college while living in Houston. “I fell in love with the Pilates movement,” she says.

During that time, Wood-Murphy was working at Accenture, and before the pandemic, she was traveling every Monday through Thursday, as is typical for a young consultant, but it wasn’t until the pandemic restricted her to going out that she felt she needed a creative outlet.

She began teaching at a studio in Houston and then moved to New York City where she wanted to meet new people while teaching, she completed the New York Pilates Studio Certification program and soon began teaching at Forma.

The idea for Terra began last May, when Wood-Murphy began teaching Pilates full time.

“To be honest, the decision itself was really tough. I went from being very comfortable financially with a steady paying job to something of a gamble – my pay was significantly cut, my hours were more erratic, I was working weekends, etc.,” she says. “It was a really difficult decision, but I justified it and decided to pursue teaching full time.”

She got married in October and began developing the concept for Tera during her honeymoon. Wood-Murphy was confident that her corporate experience would enable her to create a solid business plan, and having learned from the three other Pilates studios where she had worked, she had a clear idea of ​​how she wanted to brand the studio.

“I learned what I wanted to do in my business, what I didn’t want to do, where it worked, where it didn’t work. I basically worked for a competitor in New York for two and a half years,” she says.

Terra classes are small, with just six Reformers, which Wood-Murphy says creates “a private, intimate Pilates community where you’re surrounded by like-minded people and you just work hard.”

This class is more challenging than your average Pilates class but still accessible – even the most experienced Pilates practitioner will be challenged but beginners can easily get in as well.

In addition to the workout itself, the aesthetic of Terra’s world is also important to Wood-Murphy: The branding is done in this year’s popular oxblood shade, and the seating areas are decorated with coffee table books, lit candles and fresh flowers.

“When we first launched Terra, we honestly weren’t inspired by Pilates studios or other fitness studios. The inspiration behind the branding came more from a fashion perspective, which we think is quite different to other workout experiences in the city,” says Wood-Murphy.

This summer, she’s been teaching partially in the Hamptons, and in August, Terra will be launching an app to provide access for people who can’t make classes, as well as to accommodate on-the-go clients traveling for the holidays or heading out on adventures this fall.

“Yes, I would say we’re exclusive. You need an introduction to join, but once you’re in, you’re part of this community. And it doesn’t end when you walk out the door,” Wood-Murphy says. “People bump into each other on the street, they go to dinner together. This is more than just a Pilates class.”