Starting August 1st, join Sophiann Mahalia for Afro HIIT- a new class at UMA, Sundays from 2:00-3:00. Afro HIIT is a dance infused workout class, combining high intensity exercises with African influenced dance movement. The goal? Move and strengthen your body while having fun and learning about African culture. She comments on Afro HIIT’s origins “I wanted people to have fun working out. I know over quarantine that was a struggle for me- I didn’t want to work out. But once I created it, I was like- this is a fun way to keep your body going without even realizing you’re working out!”

Sophiann describes this class as a perfect entryway for those looking to start learning African dance forms, she comments:  “I wanted a class that had African in it but wasn't strictly an African dance class. I know sometimes when people hear straight African dance they can get nervous or think they can’t do it. I want to be in an area that everyone is comfortable with.” Sophiann began studying African dance forms at the age of 9 and has been deeply immersed in the styles and culture since then. She brings a love and care for African dance to her Afro HIIT class. She says you can expect to “get more into African Culture. I do a lot of whining, but I also give new movements that you might not have seen before and I give students the names of the movement and let them know that it comes from Umfundalai or somewhere else. So you're working out but you're also gaining knowledge and cultural experience from the class.” She hopes that students will be able to take what they learn in Afro HIIT and “transfer over to more African infused dance classes and dance hall classes.” 

Sophiann hopes that people leave the class wanting more and surprised that the hour went by so fast.

You can sign up for class through our schedule page! $15 drop ins. Free for members. 

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Updated Mask Policy

Due to rising cases of COVID as the Delta variant spreads, the city of Philadelphia is now recommending that everyone wears a mask indoors in places where you do not know that everyone is vaccinated. See more information here. In order to stay in line with the city's recommendations and protect our communities we have edited our mask policy: 

-People who are vaccinated and wish to take class without a mask must show proof of vaccination every time they take class (this is different than the previous policy that allowed only showing proof of vaccination once). A picture is fine! 

-People who are unvaccinated must wear their mask at all times while in the building. Teachers will be reinforcing this expectation in class and if people are unable to keep their mask on they will be asked to leave. 

-We strongly encourage everyone, even those who are vaccinated, to wear a mask while indoors. However, if you still prefer to not wear a mask and can provide proof of vaccination this will be allowed. 

We know this isn't necessarily the direction we were all hoping this would go. But acting fast and staying vigilant against the spread of COVID is still a top priority. Help us keep the vulnerable people in our communities safe!

We appreciate your attention to this matter. ​

Our beautiful, light-filled studios are located right in Rittenhouse Square, Philadelphia. We have 3 different studios available for rent for your class, rehearsal, meeting, party or other event! 

If there’s something Kemuel Benyehudah loves to do, it’s dance.

“To me, it’s about rebellion, it’s about do it yourself, it’s about making things more equitable for
Black and brown kids who were like left out, and they created their own ingenuity with their
bodies because that’s all they had,” Kem said. “I’m going to get creative with my body, I’m going
to get out and put graffiti on all these trains because you don’t see me so I’ll make myself
visible.”

Kem grew up in New York City with a house filled with martial arts, thanks to his father’s love of
the fighting style. In college, Kem was introduced to the drum and bass scene by his friend
Johnny Fajardo. That then sparked his interest in techno and the New York City club scene.

“The music just made sense to me, I connected with it,” Kem said.

About seven years ago, Kem moved to Philadelphia to start his doctoral program at the
University of Pennsylvania. New to the city, he started immersing himself in the city’s club scene
but also wanted to get involved in a dance community. He first started taking classes at the
Koresh Dance Academy in Rittenhouse.

Then, a friend of his suggested he take classes at Urban Movement Arts. He first took the free
salsa classes for students with Ken, then he took the partner salsa classes with Laurel. Soon
one class a week turned into six classes a week, even taking 14 classes in a row, ranging from
hip hop and street dancing to salsa and bachata

Kem loves UMA for a variety of reasons, but mainly because of the bond the instructors have.

“The instructors are a community in that they practice together and dance together, and that
wasn’t always the case at other schools,” Kem said. “A lot of times there wasn’t overlap and I
think students lose out when that’s the case.”

Throughout his time at UMA Kem learned a lot about listening to his body and its limitations.
During classes he realized his body may not move in the exact same way as his instructors, it
moves in his own way.

“There's little things, little feedback and things that helped me understand that I can't move like
Vince, or I can't move like Ricky or I can't move like Ron, or I can't move like Laurel, so don't put
that pressure on yourself,” Kem said. “That kind of put me in this other space where I don't
make it into a competition and don't turn it into like, you're trying to be, you know, like the
teacher or someone else in the class, I’m finding my own voice.”

Kem loves how dance, specifically at UMA, has given him and countless others the space to
express themselves, discover themselves and give them a space to be confident.
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“The space brings people together who probably normally would not be in the same space, you
know, people from all different walks of life come into that space and leave with the feeling of joy
and euphoria of learning that they can push their body in a way they never thought possible,”
Kem said.