Abi Porwtin
this is my Story ...
Abi Portwin is a yoga teacher, movement practitioner, performer, and facilitator whose work is devoted to the exploration of the body as a pathway for healing, expression, and transformation. With over 30 years immersed in movement-based practices, her approach is deeply informed by a lifetime of experience across dance, yoga, somatic awareness, and performance.
Her journey began at a young age through a natural curiosity about the body and its capacity to evolve, release, and renew. Her curiosity has guided me through decades of dedicated practice in modalities including Body-Mind Centering®, contact improvisation, improvised and release-based dance, and a range of yoga traditions including Iyengar, Hatha, Vinyasa, and Acro Yoga. These practices have cultivated in her a refined sensitivity to the body’s intelligence, and an understanding of the intricate relationship between physical, emotional, and mental wellbeing.
A committed yogi for over 30 years and a teacher for more than a decade, Abigail brings both depth and authenticity to her teaching. She has trained with and been influenced by respected teachers and pioneers in their fields, including Mark Breadner (with whom she completed her Level 1 & 2 teacher training), Simon Borg-Olivier, Eve Grzybowski, Peter Thomson, Sue-Ellen Kohler, as well as leading Acro Yoga teachers Jason Nemer and Jenny Squer-Klien. Alongside her yoga teaching, she has also assisted and taught Acro Yoga workshops. Her strong foundation in Iyengar yoga, combined with her background in somatic and improvisational practices, allows her to offer classes that are both technically informed and intuitively guided.
Alongside her teaching, Abigail has an extensive career as a professional performer, spanning over three decades and taking her across Australia, Asia, Europe, the UK, and the Middle East. She has worked with renowned companies such as Stalker Theatre Company and has performed at major international festivals and events including the Sydney Olympic Games Opening Ceremony, where she appeared on 2.5 metre stilts as a Wanjina Spirit. Her performance work encompasses physical theatre, stilt dancing + acrobatics, fire dancing, LED performance, mime, and character-based improvisation.
As the founder and director of Stand Tall Entertainment, Abigail has spent many years creating immersive performance experiences for corporate events, festivals, and public celebrations. Her work in this space is not only about spectacle, but about connection—inviting people out of their habitual roles and identities and into a space of play, expression, and shared human experience. Through movement and interaction, she has continually explored how to dissolve barriers, regulate the nervous system, and create environments where people feel safe to be seen and to participate fully.
This thread—of using movement as a bridge between inner experience and outer expression—runs through all of Abigail’s work.
In addition to her performance and teaching background, Abigail holds a Certificate in Movement Therapy, deepening her understanding of the connection between movement, emotional processing, and mental health. Her work is grounded in the belief that the body holds stories, patterns, and potential—and that through conscious movement, breath, and awareness, we can begin to release what no longer serves us and reconnect with a more integrated sense of self.
SoundBody is a natural evolution of Abigail’s personal and professional journey. It brings together yoga, movement, breathwork, and sound healing to create spaces for individuals to slow down, listen inward, and access deeper layers of themselves. Her offerings are designed to support nervous system regulation, emotional release, and a return to presence—guiding people gently out of habitual patterns and into a more authentic, embodied way of being.
At the heart of Abigail’s work is a deep passion for growth, healing, and community. Her own journey has been one of continual transformation—of shedding layers, meeting herself more fully, and discovering the power of the body as a tool for change. She is dedicated to sharing this pathway with others, creating environments where people feel supported to explore, express, and reconnect—with themselves and with each other.
