urban movement arts philadelphia

Urban Movement Arts (UMA) welcomes adults of all ages and experience levels to explore Hip Hop, American folk dance, and African Diaspora movement genres. We guide movers and dancers to develop true connection to community and style. Our programs and classes bring out the joy of discovering new ways of being and moving in the world.
*Artwork by Lynnea Holland Weiss and Dan Isaac Bortz

how to start dancing:

What kind of dancing do you want to do? Class descriptions are HERE. Class schedule is HERE. You don't have to choose. You can get an Intro Month and try out all the styles and levels.
Drop In! Pay as you go online or in person. You do NOT need to register online ahead of time (but you can if you want to, if you like apps, we're on MindBody.)
Meet people. We are a place to learn and practice for dancers of all levels, from total beginners to touring professionals. Get to know us as teachers and each other as students!
Make connections. In your body, with other students, with other genres and styles. Check out a performance in our space, go out social dancing with other students, share something at a work in progress showing.

Holiday Special: NEW YEARS RESOLUTION to start dancing?
$10 off Intro Month!
$30 for unlimited classes
sale ends Jan 14 2019

featured class

View Schedule

Locking with Dru
Sundays 2:30 - 3:30 pm

Locking is a dance that was born out of the funk social dances of the late 60s and 70s like the funky chicken, the funky robot and the rock steady. Like funk music, the dance has stood the test of time, influencing early New York pioneers of New Jack Swing and Hip Hop party dances. And in the hip hop dance competition circuits, it remains an upbeat category. Here's a clip of Dru in action against another world class dancer named Firelock. Dru is also a part of an amazing crew called the Hood lockers. Enjoy them here, performing at one of Movemakers' youth concerns. Locking is a fun and expressive style. You'll certainly leave class happy and grooving.

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The Hoodlockers: Dru is on the far right! You might also recognize Ricky next to him who teaches one of our House Classes!

Guest hip hop Workshop: Virgil 'Lil o' Gadson

January 13, 2019.
6:30pm - 7:45pm
$15 advance ticket purchase / $20 at the door
ALL LEVELS.

Seriously, just google this dude. There's a million amazing battle videos and a whole handful of TV appearances, including So You Think You Can Dance and America's Best Dance Crew. Oh yeah, he also principal performer in the Tony Award Nominated Broadway show After Midnight.

weekly class schedule

Lindy Hop 6 Week Series Starts Jan 13
Sundays 5:30-6:30pm
The perfect holiday gift! Purchase HERE.
Lindy Hop is a joyful, rebellious partner dance created by black teenagers in Harlem in the 1930's. It also fun to dance to soul music or early rock and roll. Ragtag Empire is Lily Kind & Heather Houde's tribe of jazz and swing dance teachers and performers.
For Total Beginners: Even those with two left feet can learn the Lindy Hop in this six week course.
Intermediate-ish: is for those who can already swing out and are comfortable social dancing out in the wild. This class goes deeper into partner dance topics like musicality, improvisation, Charleston, and even Balboa.
These classes occur simultanesouly in adjacent studios.

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Ben Baker | photo: Araba Ankuma

Hip Hop Choreography with Ben Baker
Saturdays | 2- 3 pm | January ONLY
Ben's class will have a choreography focus with emphasis on smoother vibes. It's only happening this month, so take advantage.
All Levels welcome.

parties & performances

SALSA PARTY!
Jan 18 | 8 pm Lesson | 9 pm - 12 am dancing
Our salsa parties are a warm and welcoming atmosphere for newer salsa dancers to get their feet wet. No partner necessary. First-timers welcome.
$12 online | $15 at the door

Amalia Waitr Lewis shares ginger chews and a dance experiment during July 2018's WORKINONIT. photo: paige dixon

WORKINONIT
Feb 21 | 9 pm - 10 pm | 2019
See what everyone is working on! WORKINONIT is our seasonal works in progress community night. We invite different members from the UMA world -- teachers, students, collaborators -- to share their work in progress, hypothesis, process, and experiments. An awesome chance to experience both professional creative process and amateur growth spurts. Social and saucy cabaret vibes.
Line up includes: Phil Cuttino, Ani Gavino, Evelyn Langley, and more!

Spring Artist in Residence: Sanchel Brown presents
Songs of SB
March 2 & 3
more info TBA.
You can also get to know Sanchel by taking her Bmore Afro House Class on Sundays at 3:30 pm.

and also!

LATE NIGHT HOUSE PARTY
Feb 23 | 2019 | at UMA

OPEN CALL: Artists in Residence
March 2019

UMA presents: THE HOODLOCKERS
APRIL 6 | 6 pm + 8 pm | 2019
at UMA