Rhythmic Arts Center NYC
A home for rhythm, movement, and cultural connection
Our Space
RAC is the first studio in New York City designed specifically for percussive and rhythmic arts.
The center features:
A handcrafted maple sprung floor, inspired by Brenda Bufalino’s Woodpeckers Studio
A professional sound system, backline, and streaming/recording setup
An intimate black-box performance space with exposed brick for classes, residencies, and small concerts
Amenities designed for accessibility, comfort, and creative flow
Programming includes tap and body percussion, sound baths and meditation, African and Afro-Caribbean dance, yoga and healing arts, and experimental residencies—offered at community-conscious rates.
RENT the space
“As a member of Soles of Duende, a collective rooted in collaboration across percussive dance traditions, I know how vital it is to have a home designed specifically with our art forms in mind. The Rhythmic Arts Center NYC is not just another studio—it represents care, vision, and an investment in our community. High-quality floors are more than a luxury for us; they are essential instruments that honor our bodies, our sound, and our cultural lineages.
It is especially meaningful that this space exists in El Barrio in the east side, a neighborhood deeply rooted in cultural arts and diverse demographics. Nearly ten years ago, our own journey as a trio began just a few blocks away at House of Duende, Arielle Rosales’ creative community space. To now return to the same neighborhood, working on our craft in a space built for us, by us, feels both poignant and full circle.
The Rhythmic Arts Center NYC ensures that percussive artists are not only heard but deeply supported. It is a gathering place where cross-cultural dialogue and collaboration can thrive, and where the field of percussive dance in New York City can continue to grow with strength and integrity.”
— Brinda Guha, Soles of Duende (2024 & 2025 Bessies Award Nominees)
Take a look at who’s been using RAC-NYC
Souls of Duende
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Brinae Ali Bradley-The Baby Laurence Project
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UpTown Rhythm Dance Festival
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Princess Lockaroo-Works in Process
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Dorrance Dance
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Max Pollak
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Lisa La Touche
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Guru Dharam and Siri Sat
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Dancers Unlimited
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Operation Tap
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Souls of Duende • Brinae Ali Bradley-The Baby Laurence Project • UpTown Rhythm Dance Festival • Princess Lockaroo-Works in Process • Dorrance Dance • Max Pollak • Lisa La Touche • Guru Dharam and Siri Sat • Dancers Unlimited • Operation Tap •
what they’ve been using
Multiple Drum Sets
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Vintage Vibraphone
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Electric Piano
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Percussion Locker
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Live Sound Reinforcement
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Studio Lighting
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Modular Synth Collection
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Multi Media and Installation
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Multiple Drum Sets • Vintage Vibraphone • Electric Piano • Percussion Locker • Live Sound Reinforcement • Studio Lighting • Modular Synth Collection • Multi Media and Installation •
Time Share
featuring
Saturday December 20
7:00PM
It’s a showcase! It’s a jam! It’s an absolute hang! Come witness performances, electronic experiments, improvisations, and compositions from NYC’s mosts killing tap dancers, teachers and choreographers to your favorite underground band, emerging contemporary choreographers..come as you are and share with us your secret (or not so secret) talents!
The night will morph into an open floor/jam, so bring your instrument, poetry, standup act, choreography, compositions, and improvisatory stylings. We’ve got a beautiful sprung wood floor, a plethora of percussive instruments/synths, and the best vibes.
all photos of Time Share by Timothy Wong
Nicholas Young
Nicholas Young
Nicholas Young is an artist, choreographer, dancer, musician, and a 2014 Bessie Award recipient. He began his professional career at the age of 16 in Austin, TX with Tapestry Dance Company under the direction of Acia Gray and Deirdre Strand. As Principal Dancer and Resident Choreographer of the company, he was awarded Best Male Dancer (2001) and Best Choreography (2003) by the Austin Critics Council. In the New York City cast of STOMP from 2003-2013, he moved forward with the production playing the lead role and acting as Rehearsal Director for the American Tour. Most recently, Nicholas served as the Associate Artistic Director of Dorrance Dance and has been a choreographer and collaborator with Artistic Director Michelle Dorrance for nearly a decade. Choreographic and conceptual collaborations with Dorrance Dance include: ETM The Initial Approach, ETM Double Down, Guggenheim Rotunda Project, Elemental (BAM), and Ways to Now (Jacob’s Pillow). Nicholas’ solo choreographic contributions to the company include Elastic Time which premiered at The Joyce Theater in New York City and Untitled Waveforms which premiered at Jacob’s Pillow. His work has been performed at Jacob’s Pillow, Sadlers Wells, Fira Tarrega, The Joyce Theater, City Center, and Hong Kong Arts Festival, among others. As a musician, Nicholas has performed and toured with Cyro Baptista’s Beat the Donkey, as drummer for Darwin Deez and Dorrance Dance, was cast in the Amazon film Música, and has created two electronic music scores for the documentaries Tap or Die and Aces and Knaves, produced by Jackie Pare.
Melissa Wu
Melissa Wu
Captured by Natalie Deryn Johnson | Intimate Witness & Hideki Aono
Melissa is a life long yogi, yoga therapist in training, movement teacher, sound healer and a multidisciplinary artist in dance + film/digital media based in Brooklyn, NY. She had taught, presented and curated experiences at RA MA New York, Gaia No Maya and now a co-visioning/owner of Rhythmic Arts Center. She infuses her research and studies as a professional dancer in movement, somatics, anatomy, psychology, reiki, biology and her own lived experience with Chinese Medicine growing up in Hong Kong, into the systematic teachings of Sacred Kundalini Yoga (Guru Dharam/Sacred Yoga Therapy). Inspired by her own journey recovering from addictions and domestic violence, Melissa aims to share practical tools to alchemize one’s life circumstance into its fullest creative expression.
Melissa presents herself alongside upcoming artists and healers in-person and online through her art collaborative WUWU. She services independent dance/music artists and art non-profits in NYC with social justice focus to find their voices in creative and art direction through her media company 828 Media.
Melissa is a K.R.I. certified Kundalini Yoga teacher and an active teacher since 2019. She completed her Level I training with Guru Dharam and Siri Sat in 2020 with Dream Hive, and began her Level II training series with Hari Kaur in 2023. She received Gong training in Las Vegas, Neveda with Mandeep Khalsa. She is a Vinyasa and Hatha yogi since 2010 and holds a B.A. in Dance, with extensive studies in Kinesiology, Psychology, Biology, Choreography and Sociology aside from her movement training in Ballet, Horton and Release Technique. She had worked extensively with Edith Stephen before her passing as her main film editor.
Max Pollak
Max Pollak
Max Pollak is an Austrian-born virtuoso who’s redefining the boundaries of rhythm. A master musician, band leader, percussive dancer, composer, and educator, Pollak seamlessly blends tap dance, body percussion, and singing into a singular, electrifying performance. He treats the body as a legitimate, versatile instrument, making it an integral voice in any ensemble. Pollak has worked across the globe, collaborating with titans in jazz, classical, and Latin music. His extraordinary musicianship has put him on stage with legends like Ray Brown, Chucho Valdés, Paquito D'Rivera, Pedrito Martinez, and Danilo Pérez, and even classical superstars like Diana Damrau and Zubin Mehta. He's a true genre-buster, equally comfortable collaborating with Los Muñequitos de Matanzas as he is with the Bavarian State Opera Orchestra. A testament to his impact, Max Pollak is featured on the U.S. Postal Service Forever Stamp honoring Tap Dance. An award-winning performer and the co-creator of the hit off-Broadway show Carmen - To Havana and Back, Pollak's dynamic artistry has graced prestigious venues like Vienna's Konzerthaus and Zurich’s Tonhalle. His debut CD “RumbaTap” was released in 2015.
