Greville's Bio
I was born in England, where I lived for the first 18 years of my life. I saw my first Yogis when I was 7, and they were wearing orange clothes. We were on holiday, and my mum told me to "watch out for those people."
For most of my life, I've been mad about football (soccer), The Beatles, and freedom of choice. I've been attracted to some very colorful people and experiences.
I dreamt of being an actor from a very early age, convinced that this was a pathway to help gain self-understanding, which I guessed might lead me to some sort of liberation.
I thought that if I could play all these roles, it would help me to know myself. A tiny but constant and unmistakable voice inside me kept repeating, "Know thyself." And my Nan would quote Shakespeare often, and she'd say, "To thine own self be true, and then to no other can thou be false."
At age 18, I understudied the role of Jesus Christ in a record-breaking production of "Jesus Christ Superstar," and after that, was a bit lost. Acting roles seemed inconsequential. Out of the blue, a friend invited me to live in Paris with him and his mum, and that was it. I left England, knowing that one day, I'd end up in Los Angeles and begin my acting career. Or so I thought.
While in Paris, I became friends with some students of the Marcel Marceau Mime School, and as they stood on their heads and hands and twisted this way and that, I asked what on Earth were they doing?
"Yoga," came the reply. From that moment on, I had to explore.
I'd been very interested in Tibetan Buddhism the previous year and had a bunch of books on it. I was familiar with the term Yoga and what it meant. Pathways began to open up for me and I became a student of breath control (pranayama), asana (posture) practice, and meditation.
I moved to Copenhagen for the winter a year later but carried on practicing and finally moved to LA in 1987, at age 21.
No money, no return ticket, but unlimited hope and belief. This was my luggage.
Shortly thereafter, I found Yogi Bhajan's Kundalini Yoga, to which I credit a speedy recovery from a motorcycle crash that broke my left knee, left elbow and jaw. A year later, I came across a Sivananda Yoga class that I fell in love with. Once I started doing Sun Salutations, I couldn't stop.
My path led me to Maha Yoga in Brentwood and then Yoga Works in Santa Monica, where I've become very familiar with the Iyengar and Ashtanga Yoga traditions. There, I completed both the celebrated Teacher Training and Advanced Teacher Training programs with Maty Ezraty, the founder, and Lisa Walford.
Maty hired me right away and I've been there ever since. In 2004 I began teaching Kids Yoga, and in 2006, I received my Yoga Works Certification to the 500-hour level and went to Japan to teach teachers how to teach Kids Yoga, returning there to co-teach an adult training.
In the course of a day, I see the broadest range of humanity. My students are 3 years to 85 years old. Among them are the blind, war veterans, professional ballerinas and celebrities. Some are teenagers, some are mothers, daughters, fathers, sons, grandmas and grandpas--people of all shapes and sizes, all levels from stiffer than stiff to looser than loose. Yoga, in all its many forms, can help enrich one's experience of life. I consider myself most fortunate, because as a yoga teacher, I can help people help themselves.
Greville teaches publicly and privately in Los Angeles, and is available for customized retreats.