Raising the Barre

OpenBarre is a new fitness studio, located off Route 1, that brings a new kind of ‘barre’ into College Park.

The studio, founded in February 2017, is designed to give students at the University of Maryland a different workout experience from any they will find at on-campus recreation facilities or pricey boutique studios in the surrounding area, according to their website.

Barre is a unique form of exercise that uses a ballet barre, combining pilates, yoga, and dance without the choreography people usually associate it with. Students complete small variations of movements, focusing on certain muscle groups by holding their body weight in certain positions for long periods of time. The goal of the workout is to get their bodies working in a different way than they would during other cardio or strength training exercises, regardless of their fitness level.

“I was never someone who loved working out at the gym when I went here. There were too many people,” owner Lauren Filocco said. “I liked going somewhere smaller where you got a little bit more attention.”

Filocco, a 2012 University of Maryland graduate, first started taking barre classes to spend time with her mom after work. She found herself traveling 40 minutes away from her home and spending at least 10 hours in the studio throughout the week. She became close to the owner of a studio in Rockville and was inspired to start her own. Filocco noticed a gap in the private fitness studio market in the area.“If I’m going to do it anywhere,” she said, “I’m going to do it in College Park.”

OpenBarre offers a variety of classes for students, according to Filocco, including one inspired by a drinking game. “Barre Games” is a circuit-based barre class that mirrors the game, “Kings.” A deck of cards is placed in the middle of the room, and each card symbolizes a different exercise, such as plies or jump squats. Once the card is drawn, everyone in the class does the exercise correlated with that card for one to two minutes. The player also draws a weight from under a pile of balls, but if the player knocks over the pile, they must stay in plank position for the next three rounds.

“Barre Games is a class some people seem afraid to try because it is so completely different from everything else,” Filocco said. “But when people try it they usually love it and come back for more.”

“Sunrise Barre” and “Barre Through Break” are two of other classes offered at OpenBarre. These 45-minute classes allow for students to squeeze in a workout before or between classes. Sophomore Morgan Williams, who primarily teaches morning classes, explained Filocco contacted the presidents of different dance teams and organizations on campus looking for teachers. Instructors of the classes, now, either attend or have graduated from UMD.

Williams said, “It’s really cool watching my clients grow [at] something that was really difficult for them months ago. They’re doing awesome now.”

OpenBarre offers financial packages for classes designed for students- including semester long, monthly, or a single class options which you can find on their website.

“We’re not going to charge a rate that college students can’t afford,” Filocco said.

Katie Murtough, assistant director at UMD’s school of Public Policy's Peru Program, has tried many different exercise classes, but she has continued to take classes at OpenBarre..

“I’ve had really great results with barre, but those results are because I felt motivated to come back and stick with it following my first class,” she said.

OpenBarre is heavily involved in the community through various philanthropic events. On Nov. 19, OpenBarre is hosting a charity barre class for Headbands of Hope in The Stamp Student Union’s Colony Ballroom. For each participant, Headbands of Hope is donating a headband to a child with cancer in a local hospital. Participants will also receive goodie bags from vendors including Athleta, Insomnia Cookies, and Potomac Pizza, according to their Facebook page.

If you are looking to try barre, this event would be a great opportunity to get your feet wet and help out a great cause!