Brookline Village Yoga Studio To Close Doors After 2 Decades

BROOKLINE, MA— A neighborhood yoga studio in Brookline Village owned by a Brookline couple for nearly 20 years is closing its brick and mortar space.

"Inner Space is leaving Station Street and our last day is Nov. 30. It’s the end of an era," said Elie Dunford who owns the space with her husband Ali Mohajerani. "We tried very hard to keep it going, but the pandemic got the best of us."

Eight months ago, Inner Space went online and offered Zoom classes like many yoga studios across Brookline amid pandemic. Now, with online yoga being the way of the future, the studio will stay online, the owners said.

"Though the news of a vaccine is very encouraging, we see zooming as our new reality for the foreseeable future, and certainly throughout the winter months," Dunford in an email to students.

She said only two of the Inner Space instructors have been holding online classes from the space, while some five others have been holding their online classes from home.

"The space seems to have lost its aura without us all together," Dunford said.

After months of back and forth with attorneys and lawsuits, Dunford said she finally received word from her landlord that he will let them out of their lease if they leave by the end of the month. And so they are packing up.

The move away from a brick and mortar is bittersweet.

"We were all hoping for the happy day when we could return to the studio to practice and celebrate our community together in person again," she said. "On the other hand, many of us embrace the positives of this new world, don’t miss the commuting and parking, and love the fact that we now can enjoy our classes even when we’ve moved or are traveling."

After 19 years in a space known for it's eclectic, vibrant vibe, Dunford said in her email:

"The celebration of life and joy and learning and laughter have made Inner Space such a rich, healing environment, and there is no way that we could ever express how much we will miss this magical space."

The space has been home to yoga classes, martial artists, dancers, musicians, puppeteers, magicians, artists and events.

When its previous Kenmore Square home closed to move to Station Street, the Karate community was instrumental and helping create the Station Street space, said Dunford. They helped remove the maple wood floor and mirrors piece by piece from the Kenmore location, before replacing them in the new Brookline Village location.

Over the years the studio has offered capoeira, bhangra, salsa, tai chi, massage, ballet, Chinese dance and other disciplines. The studio was home to the first Crossfit venue in Boston, Dunford said.

"Children who attended local daycare or elementary schools, Inner Space was probably their first exposure to yoga, and it's likely that we taught them their first Downward Dog," Dunford said. "Perhaps they learned to sing in Spanish or beat a drum at our Groovy Baby Music classes."

The couple donated the venue for Brookline High School open mics and talent shows, middle school yoga and writing workshops and graduation parties, Brookline Open Studios, and First Light. In 2016, when yoga classes at the Veteran's Hospital in Jamaica Plain were put on hold because a pipe burst, they opened their doors for those veterans to use their space and they ended up continuing until the pandemic.

They've held hundreds of dance parties, birthday parties, bat and bar mitzvahs, weddings and anniversaries in the space.

"Our problem was that we could no longer hold parties and special events, kids yoga and music classes in the space, and there was no way to make that up," Dunford said. "Our last celebration [pre-pandemic] was a 50th birthday party with 100 people contra dancing til the wee hours of the morning."

But there is yet hope that the catch-call creative studio will return down the line.

"We have not given up the hope of finding yet another brick & mortar to renovate and make our own," Dunford said. "Ali is actively on the lookout for a space within a stone’s throw of the village if the stars align"

Dunford and her husband also owned Kookoo Cafe for more than a decade and just sold it last year. More: Brookline Village Cafe To Change Hands

Jenna Fisher is a news reporter for Patch. Got a tip? She can be reached at Jenna.Fisher@patch.com or by calling 617-942-0474. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram (@ReporterJenna). Have a something you'd like posted on the Patch? Here's how.