Since its founding in 1993, the Mahea Uchiyama Center for International Dance has offered weekly classes and workshops in the dance traditions of the Pacific Islands and North and South India for beginners through advanced level adults and children taught by master teachers. It also offers classes in the Hawaiian language and special workshops on the mbira, a unique musical culture conceptualized by the Shona people of Zimbabwe.

The Center’s students have performed locally and at such international venues as the Hollywood Bowl, the Heiva in Tahiti, and the National Museum of New Zealand. MUCID students and teachers have also successfully participated in various competitions in California and Hawai’i, bringing home top honors for our performances.

For eight years, the Center has produced the Kapili Polynesian Dance and Music Workshops, which has been recognized by the Alliance for California Traditional Arts. Kapili attracts students from as far away as Virginia to study with master teachers from the Bay Area, Hawai’i, and Tahiti.

Our center—where dance classes and some workshops are offered—is conveniently located in the beautiful Berkeley City Ballet Building, 1800 Dwight Way in Berkeley. It offers two studios with the latest wood sprung floor and mirrors. It has excellent light and a quiet and inspiring atmosphere.