🧘 The Yoga Instructor

Who plays who

• A — The Instructor: calm, precise, endlessly patient, standing far closer than the poses require.
• B — The Student: flexible, competitive, determined to hold the pose without complaining.
• A leads Acts 1–3 with instructions. B takes the lead in Act 4 by changing the pose.

What you need

• Two mats, side by side, and enough floor space to move on
• Workout clothes you do not mind losing — this is not a costume contest
• A towel and a glass of water each
• Bare feet, bare hands, and a room warm enough to undress in

Act 1 — 🕯️ Setup

The mats are out and A is standing at the top of B's mat with a list of poses and a very professional expression. For the first few minutes this is a genuine class: breathing, alignment, nothing else. A is going to make the student hold every pose longer than is strictly necessary.

Beats

• Start with three real poses and correct B's alignment by hand.
• A counts the holds out loud. B is not allowed to move before the count finishes.
• No contact below the waist in this act. Shoulders, spine and hips — that is the limit.

Lines to say

• "Breathe out as you fold. Don't hold your breath for me."
• "Your hips are twisted. Let me fix that."
• "Two more breaths. Then we move."

Act 2 — 🔥 Build

B is warm now and the poses keep bringing you closer. Twice A has had to step over B to reach the other side of the mat, and neither time was an accident. Every pose from here is done as a pair.

Beats

• Switch to partner poses only: one base, one flyer, and swap roles every time.
• A narrates the angle of every hold, calmly, as if this were still a class.
• Both of you keep a hand on the other throughout — for balance, officially.

Lines to say

• "Press your back into mine. Now trust it."
• "This pose opens the hips. Stay there."
• "Your turn to hold me up."

Act 3 — ⚡ Escalate

The pose that is going to end the class has already been chosen, and both of you know it. A holds B in a long, deep hip opener and does not let go, counting breaths until the count stops meaning anything. A is still giving instructions, and they are no longer about yoga.

Beats

• A keeps the instructor's voice for the entire act. That contrast is the scene.
• B may only respond — breathe, arch, or say the instructor's name.
• No changing the pose. Whatever A has set up is what this act happens in.

Lines to say

• "Stay in the pose. I decide when you come out of it."
• "That's the angle. Now hold it."
• "Do not move. You're almost there."

Act 4 — 💥 Climax

The class is over, and the moment A stops instructing is the moment B takes the lead. B changes the pose without asking permission, and the instructor follows for the first time all night. Whoever moves first leads the final act.

Beats

• B leads now. A does exactly what B says for the whole act.
• Change the pace completely from Act 3: faster, closer, less controlled.
• Nobody explains anything. Finish what the other three acts began.

Lines to say

• "Your turn to hold still."
• "Stay exactly like that."
• "Don't be careful with me."

Act 5 — 🤍 Aftercare

The mats are a mess and the candles have burned down to nothing. The cool-down is the last pose of the class, and it is not optional.

Beats

• Stretch properly, one last time, side by side. Cool down as if the class were real.
• Water, a shared towel, and lying flat on your backs doing nothing.
• Say one thing you liked and one pose you want taught again next time.

Lines to say

• "Best class I've ever attended."
• "Next time I want that hip opener again."
• "You are very good at holding a count."

Aftercare

A real cool-down, two minutes flat on your backs, then water and a shared towel.,Check properly that nothing aches in the wrong way, and say one pose you want taught again.,One thing each of you liked — out loud, in ordinary voices, before you roll the mats up.

Ground rules and consent

• This is real yoga to begin with. Stretch properly, or somebody pulls something and the night is over.
• The instructor adjusts with hands on, and the student may say "lighter" at any point, for any touch.
• "Savasana" ends the session immediately — the pose, the scene, all of it.
• Nobody holds a position that hurts. Pain is not the goal; the angle is.

The gentler version of the same ground is in Sensate focus.

Frequently asked