Sculpere — Northern Liberties

Cristina Espaillat,
founder · est. 2011

Sculpere began with an injury — and the slow work of returning to a body that had spent nineteen years in ballet.

Cristina started classical ballet at five, training at the Rock School and earning a BFA in Dance Performance from Butler University. She danced professionally with City Ballet of San Diego until a foot injury in 2005 ended her career on stage. The recovery led her to yoga and Pilates — first as rehabilitation, then as practice, then as the work of a lifetime.

She completed her 200-hour yoga certification at the Yoga Life Institute in 2007 and opened Sculpere in Northern Liberties in 2011. The studio is what she's built it to be over the years since: small classes, real attention, a methodology refined slowly over more than a decade. Studied closely. Taught with precision.

In 2017, Cristina was invited to teach the summer intensive at the School of the Philadelphia Ballet, and went on to serve six years on its faculty — bringing what she'd built at Sculpere to the next generation of professional dancers.

1990 — 2009 Nineteen years of classical ballet
Butler University BFA, Dance Performance
2003 — 2005 City Ballet of San Diego
2007 Yoga Life Institute · 200-hr certification
2011 → Sculpere, Northern Liberties
2017 — 2023 Faculty, School of the Philadelphia Ballet

An hour with Cristina,
then a week of classes.

A one-on-one private session with the founder, plus seven days of unlimited classes across the schedule. The right way to know whether Sculpere is for you.

i. A 60-minute private with Cristina — your body, your goals, your starting point.

ii. Seven days of unlimited classes — every style, every instructor on the schedule.

iii. Personal follow-up with recommendations for next steps.

iv. Mondays only. Slots are limited each week.

For mothers,
before and after.

Specialized prenatal and postnatal workshops, taught by Cristina. Built for the real work of pregnancy and the slow return after birth — not generic prenatal yoga, not a fitness class with modifications.

Small groups. Taught by someone who is living what she's teaching.

When

Every other Monday
2:00 — 3:30 PM

Capacity

Eight to ten
students

Investment

$40
per workshop

Format

Prenatal & postnatal,
alternating

Reserve a workshop

Private sessions, taught with the precision of classical training.

Whether you're returning from injury, working through a specific limitation, or want the kind of attention a class can't deliver — private sessions are taught by Cristina and our senior instructors.

Each session is built around what you actually need: alignment, mobility, recovery, foundational practice, or deeper work in a specific tradition.

Intro private with Cristina + 7 days unlimited $80

Private session with Cristina $125

Private session with senior instructor $100

Book a private

To carve. To sculpt.

From the stage to the studio floor.

Four phases.
One system.

An hour with Cristina,
then a week of classes.

A small week.

Three ways to practice.

Privates & workshops

For mothers,
before and after.

Private sessions, taught with the precision of classical training.

209 Poplar Street.
An oasis in the city.