Dance Studio Feature

PMT Dance Studio NYC: 25 Years of Building Dance Culture from the Ground Up

From a Saturday afternoon class with four students to the Today Show, Madison Square Garden, and a Guinness World Record — PMT Dance Studio is what happens when one person refuses to let a dream die.

By Dance Mogul Magazine  |  Dance Studio Feature  |  Updated May 2026

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What Is PMT Dance Studio?

In a city overflowing with dance studios, PMT Dance Studio has done something remarkably difficult — it has lasted. For twenty-five years, PMT House of Dance has been a cornerstone of the New York City dance community, a space where street dance culture is honored, where working choreographers teach alongside emerging talent, and where a young dancer with nothing more than heart can find a home.

PMT Dance Studio NYC is more than a classroom. It is a dance school, a repertory company, a seasonal showcase producer, and a launching pad for professional careers. Located in the Chelsea neighborhood of Manhattan at 28 West 25th Street, it offers classes in Breaking, Hip-Hop, Jazz, Contemporary, Ballet, Capoeira, House, Haitian dance, Salsa, African dance, and fitness — making it one of the most genre-diverse studios in the city. But what sets PMT apart is not just its class offerings. It is the culture that its founder built from scratch, one Saturday afternoon at a time.

This is the story of Pavan M. Thimmaiah and the dance institution he created against every reasonable expectation.

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Pavan Thimmaiah: The Pre-Med Student Who Chose Dance

Pavan "PMT" Thimmaiah did not follow the expected path. He graduated from New York University as a pre-med student with a B.A. in Psychology. He was all set to continue toward medical school — the track his family anticipated, the life that was practically laid out in front of him. But something inside him would not let go of dance.

He decided to take a single year off after graduating to explore what dance could become. He subscribed to a simple philosophy: live life with no regrets. That one year became a lifetime. And his "part-time diversion" became PMT Dance Studio.

Thimmaiah is the first Indian American to choreograph for a major U.S. recording artist and for network television. He has been featured in Dance Teacher Magazine, Dance Magazine, Dance Europe, The New York Times, The New York Post, Huffington Post, and The Dance Gazette. He has choreographed for Vanilla Ice, Macy Gray, Harry Connick Jr., Sean Paul, and Apache Indian. He is the resident choreographer for NBC's The Today Show since 2010, and he has choreographed NBA halftime shows for the Brooklyn Nets since 2013. He set the Guinness World Record for the "World's Largest Street Dance" live on the Today Show. He won a prestigious Clio Award for the viral MCA Day Beastie Boys Tribute video he choreographed.

And yet, if you ask him what his proudest achievements are, he will tell you they are his students.

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From a Basement Hobby to a Full-Time Home

The origin story of PMT Dance Studio reads like a parable about persistence. Thimmaiah started by renting hourly space at Dick Shea's/Angel's Hideaway at 69 West 14th Street. He hosted a single hip-hop class on Saturdays from 3:30 to 5:00 PM. The first class had four students.

His teaching style — patient, passionate, deeply rooted in both the technique and the culture of street dance — earned him a steady following. That one class grew into a full curriculum of classes and the popular Performance Workshop Program. By the fall of 2001, he had organized the first PMT Seasonal Showcase — the foundation for what would become a nationally reviewed showcase company producing dozens of shows annually, developing hundreds of dance companies and choreographers over the years.

On November 1st, 2004, Thimmaiah acquired what is now the James Michael Ambury III Studio (Studio A), giving PMT Dance Studio a full-time home for the first time. Though it was a single room, it was enough. He expanded the faculty, added classes, and began offering affordable rehearsal space to the wider dance community.

In June 2006, when the entire third floor of 69 West 14th Street was unexpectedly vacated, Thimmaiah made a bid for it — and won. PMT expanded across the full floor. Dressing rooms, bathrooms, new flooring, mirrors, professional audio-visual equipment, and ongoing renovations transformed the space into a proper dance institution.

PMT later moved to its current home at 28 West 25th Street in the Chelsea/Flatiron district, where it continues to operate as one of New York City's most community-driven dance studios.

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What Makes PMT Dance Studio Different

PMT Dance Studio has earned a great reputation in street dance forms — particularly Breaking, Popping, and Hip-Hop — but its class roster reflects a commitment to range that few studios in Manhattan can match. Students can take classes in Jazz, Contemporary, Ballet, House, African dance, Haitian dance, Limón Technique, Capoeira, Salsa, and fitness. All classes are taught by working choreographers and professional dancers who bring real industry experience into the studio.

The studio's most popular program is the Performance Workshop, designed specifically for adults of all levels. These workshops culminate in public showcases where students perform alongside professional groups in reviewed productions. It is a pipeline designed to turn recreational dancers into performing artists, and it has worked for hundreds of participants since its inception.

PMT's Youth Dance Program has also experienced significant growth, offering smaller class sizes with more one-on-one attention for young dancers and their families. Pavan Thimmaiah has personally mentored several success stories, including Apollo Theater Champion Kai Rivera, who won the "Stars of Tomorrow" competition at just eight years old.

In addition to classes, PMT offers private lessons with Thimmaiah himself — a service NBC's Today Show has described as working with a "celebrity choreographer." His teaching credits outside PMT include NYU, Wagner College, UC Irvine, Franklin & Marshall College, the Alvin Ailey Extension, Peridance, Joffrey Ballet, and Ballet Arts.

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PMT Dance Company and the Seasonal Showcase Legacy

PMT Dance Studio operates two distinct sub-companies, each serving a critical role in New York's dance ecosystem.

The PMT Seasonal Showcase Company is a nonprofit entity that produces dozens of showcases annually, typically in the spring and fall seasons. These productions feature dance companies at every level — many of which are up-and-coming. The showcase company provides rehearsal space and production assistance to its presenters, and selects one to two companies each year as artists-in-residence for dedicated showcase features. Since 2001, it has supported the development of hundreds of dance companies and choreographers, making it one of the longest-running independent showcase platforms in the city.

The PMT Dance Company is the studio's repertory company, directed by Pavan Thimmaiah with assistant director Alan Watson. The company blends original music, narrative storytelling, and a distinctive "movement before music" methodology with elements of Hip-Hop, Funk, Contemporary, and Jazz. Their credits include performances at the International Bollywood Movie Awards, the International Dance Festival at the Duke Theater, the Canadian National Exhibition in Toronto, Montreal's 375th Anniversary Celebration, Times Square on New Year's Eve, Madison Square Garden halftime shows, and featured segments on NBC's The Today Show.

In 2008, the company produced its first feature-length stage production, "Struck…" — a collaborative work that was later featured on the Sundance Channel's "Young Revolutionaries" TV Special. This was followed by "Dissonance," a dance musical that has toured venues across the East Coast.

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House Head Session: A Cultural Institution Within an Institution

One of the most respected ongoing events at PMT Dance Studio is the House Head Session — a weekly gathering originally created by Byron Cox and now run by James "Cricket" Colter. It exists in the space between class, club, and stage: a place where dancers exchange methods and styles, improvise in cyphers, train solo, rehearse in groups, or simply lose themselves in the music. A live DJ fills the intimate studio with House music, and the atmosphere becomes something more powerful than any scheduled class can offer.

The session is multi-generational and open to anyone who loves to move — locals and visitors alike. Young kids, seasoned OGs, and everything in between share the floor. Occasionally, percussionists join the DJ for live collaborations. This is the kind of cultural ecosystem that cannot be manufactured. It can only be cultivated over years of trust, consistency, and shared purpose.

It was from the House Head Session that the Crazy Natives crew was reborn — a collective of dancers committed to expanding the movement styles that exist in street dance while keeping true to the authentic energy of NYC club culture. The crew, originally founded by Colter and Roberto "BJ" Trinidad in 1997, bridges the gap between street dance events and the concert stage.

Pavan Thimmaiah played a pivotal role in creating the conditions for this kind of community. He helped usher in sessions and jams as essential elements of dance education — with culture and history at the center of that effort. His collaborations with legends like Ken Swift and Don "Campbellock" Campbell created opportunities for street dance styles at a time when many studios avoided hosting these gatherings.

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Surviving COVID-19 and Fighting for the Dance Community

The COVID-19 pandemic nearly destroyed independent dance studios across the country. Arts facilities, including dance studios, were not eligible for most of the financial assistance available to other businesses. Artists faced hardships finding food and housing. Students disappeared. Revenue collapsed overnight.

PMT Dance Studio responded by launching donation-based online classes — keeping the community connected while supporting artists and students who were struggling. Thimmaiah also stepped into an advocacy role, co-founding the Dance Studio Alliance, an organization formed to unite dance institution leaders in overcoming the existential crisis the industry faced. As he noted publicly, despite the dance industry generating billions of dollars in New York City alone, studios were ignored and neglected, leaving thousands of artists and small business owners fighting to survive.

PMT survived. Not every studio did. And the fact that PMT is celebrating its 25th anniversary in 2026 is a testament to the resilience of the community Thimmaiah built over two and a half decades.

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25 Years Strong: The 2026 Anniversary Celebration

In May 2026, PMT Dance Studio celebrates a quarter-century of service to the New York City dance community. The 25th Anniversary Spring Dance Series takes place on May 17, 2026, at the Manhattan Movement and Arts Center, with showcases at 3:00 PM and 6:00 PM featuring dance companies and choreographers of all levels. Performers receive up to 15 hours of free rehearsal space — staying true to the PMT philosophy of supporting artists at every stage of their journey.

Twenty-five years. From four students in a rented room to the Today Show, Madison Square Garden, the Sundance Channel, the Brooklyn Nets, a Guinness World Record, and hundreds of showcases that launched careers. For the global dance community, PMT Dance Studio represents something essential: proof that culture, persistence, and an unwavering commitment to community can build something that lasts.

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Why This Story Matters to Dance Mogul Magazine

Dance Mogul Magazine has always believed that the dance industry's real power comes from the institutions that serve the community — not just the individuals who headline it. Studios like PMT Dance Studio are the infrastructure of dance culture. They are where technique is taught, where culture is preserved, where young people discover their purpose, and where working artists find the space to create without exploitation.

Pavan Thimmaiah's story is a blueprint for anyone who has been told to choose the "practical" path over the passionate one. He left a medical career to follow a dream that started with four students in a rented room. Twenty-five years later, his students perform on national television, his showcases have launched hundreds of companies, and his studio has outlasted economic crises, pandemics, and the relentless pressures of operating an arts business in New York City.

That is what we mean when we talk about building dance culture. Not overnight success. Not viral moments. But the slow, disciplined work of showing up every day, opening the doors, and creating space for others to grow. That is the foundation of everything at Dance Mogul Magazine — and it is the foundation of everything at PMT.

For dancers looking to explore the depth and variety of dance education available in New York City, PMT Dance Studio remains one of the city's essential institutions. For educators and studio owners building their own programs, Pavan Thimmaiah's journey is a case study in what is possible when purpose is stronger than circumstance.

Read more about the dance industry leaders and institutions shaping the future of our culture.

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