Last weekend I went to Marco Rojas’s yoga class at Pure Yoga. It’s listed as “Vinyasa 2” but it was nothing like any vinyasa class I’ve ever been to. We held poses for a LONG time, dug deep to explore them, and paused after each one to examine how it affected us. I had done all of the postures before, many times in fact, and yet each one felt new. Marco took us to the very edge of our physical practice to suspend our judgment and stop the chatter of our minds. And then he asked to stand on that edge with our eyes closed. We went through the entire class as if we had lost our sense of sight. We were breathless when he gave us the challenge.
How did Marco get this idea to ask us to close our eyes to raise the bar? He was on the top of his game, teaching at Yoga Works to classes filled with 70+ students. His ego was getting the best of him, and then a woman came to his class one day with a dog, a seeing eye dog. Instead of modifying for this woman, he made everyone else in the class modify and have her experience of yoga. He said it changed his teaching and his students forever. They could no longer look outside for a dristi, a focal point. They had to find their focus within. We all do.
If you look within your own heart, where does your focus lie?
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Published by Christa Avampato
IN BRIEF
Author, journalist, digital product manager, and licensed New York City tour guide. Creator and host of NYC's Secrets and Lies. Alumna of the University of Pennsylvania (BA), the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia (MBA), Arizona State University (Biomimicry), and the University of Cambridge (MSt in Sustainability Leadership).
I build digital media platforms, report on urban climate resilience and biodiversity, and produce live narrative experiences that connect communities to history, nature, and place.
THE DEEP DIVE
My work centers on a single thread: building systems and stories that foster deep connection to our shared world. Across digital streaming, environmental reporting, and live civic storytelling, I design experiences that help people understand complex ideas and the environments around them.
DIGITAL PRODUCT STRATEGY & MEDIA LEADERSHIP
At Carnegie Hall, I serve as Digital Product Manager, leading product strategy, operations, and technical delivery for the video streaming platform Carnegie Hall+. I translate artistic mission into scalable, high-performance streaming architecture that reaches audiences globally. Previously, I led agile product and delivery teams across operations and compliance at American Express, managed Broadway theatrical productions and national tours, and guided strategic initiatives across cultural institutions.
ENVIRONMENTAL JOURNALISM & AUTHORSHIP
As a freelance journalist, I investigate how living systems, urban infrastructure, and human culture intersect. My reported features on urban decarbonization, biodiversity, coastal resilience, and biomimicry appear in publications including Smithsonian Magazine, The Washington Post, Mongabay, Natural History Magazine, and Foreign Policy Magazine. In fiction, I write the Emerson Page young adult novel series, alongside upcoming historical fiction and nonfiction works on New York history, mythology, and human resilience. I also write Togetherhood, a LinkedIn newsletter focused on urban ecology and community restoration, and co-host the podcast Frameworks in the Wild.
LIVE EXPERIENCE & CIVIC STORYTELLING
As a licensed New York City tour guide and live event producer, I transform urban landscapes into shared narrative encounters. I created, produce, and host NYC's Secrets and Lies, an interactive live storytelling series staged across cultural landmarks including the New York Transit Museum, the South Street Seaport Museum, and the historic tall ship Wavertree. I also design and lead site-specific walking tours exploring coastal ecology, food history, and neighborhood evolution, often with partners at Climate Week NYC and the Natural Areas Conservancy.
DOUBLE OR NOTHING MEDIA
Through my independent production studio, Double or Nothing Media, I develop ventures across media, ecology, and public history:
Digital Products & Strategy: Architecting scalable digital platforms, streaming experiences, and operational models for mission-driven institutions.
Environmental Reporting & Publications: Delivering long-form reporting, books, and newsletters grounded in climate resilience and regenerative design.
Site-Specific Live Storytelling: Producing immersive live shows and educational walking tours that engage public audiences in community history.
CONNECT
Website & Production Hub: doubleornothingmedia.com and christaavampato.com
Newsletter: Togetherhood on LinkedIn - linkedin.com/newsletters/togetherhood-7273771832221089792/
Instagram & Threads: @christarosenyc
Emerson Page Novels: emersonpagebook.wordpress.com/
View all posts by Christa Avampato
Last weekend I went to Marco Rojas’s yoga class at Pure Yoga. It’s listed as “Vinyasa 2” but it was nothing like any vinyasa class I’ve ever been to. We held poses for a LONG time, dug deep to explore them, and paused after each one to examine how it affected us. I had done all of the postures before, many times in fact, and yet each one felt new. Marco took us to the very edge of our physical practice to suspend our judgment and stop the chatter of our minds. And then he asked to stand on that edge with our eyes closed. We went through the entire class as if we had lost our sense of sight. We were breathless when he gave us the challenge.
hey christa,
since i started with yoga a year ago i’ve always experienced these eyeclosing postures. in december it was a month of holding the postures for up to 8min – during this time you just have to close your eyes. and the feeling is amazing – when you get so deep on the ground of the sea, well your soul, it feels amazingly.
i always close my eyes for the postures (esp. headstand), eventhough we are just holding the postures fpor shorter times. you can always close your eyes. do it! the result will surprise you!
thanks for sharing your experience though!
enjoy your weekend.
love from germany,
pam
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Hi Pam – the results were shocking! I couldn’t believe how much I didn’t know where my body was with my eyes closed. It was truly amazing – thank you for the encouragement! 🙂
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