Joe’s Movement Emporium Youth Programs

Joe’s Movement Emporium Youth Programs include activities such as a dance production class, family square dance, and daily movement classes for all levels of movers. Young people can take part in performances and education programs that connect local audiences to world traditions, as well as performances that include dance, comedy, concerts, and aerial arts. The programs also offer technical training in theater production and digital media, college exploration, job skills coaching, real-world work experience, team building, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills, along with literacy and language units taught by a master dance specialist and dance instruction for high school special education students.

• Ages: 3–18 years old
• Schedule: The facility is open 7 days a week, 350 days per year, with class options Monday–Friday, Saturday, and Sunday during daytime and evening hours.

Joe’s Movement Emporium Youth Programs are part of five arts-based youth programs: CreativeWorks, Camp Joe’s, Club Joe’s, Partnering Artists with Classroom Teachers (PACT), and The Ability Project. CreativeWorks (formerly the Theater Tech Program) serves local youth and young adults ages 17 through 21 with limited access to career-based arts training, and the Theater Tech Program/CreativeWorks provides life and employability skills for at-risk youth. Camp Joe’s offers spring break and summer extended learning, and Club Joe’s is an after-school arts program where local families can find affordable, quality childcare. The PACT program is an arts integration program for Pre-K through first grade in Prince George’s County, Maryland, and The Ability Project is an adaptive dance program that provides dance instruction for high school special education students in Prince George’s County Public Schools and provides physical activity to improve the health of teens and adults with differing abilities.

World Arts Focus was founded in 1992 by Brooke Kidd, and Joe’s Movement Emporium was founded in 1995 as a studio for dance and the performing arts by Brooke Kidd and Ajax Joe Drayton. The performing arts space opened its doors in 2007 following a $3.2 million capital campaign, and in 2015 Joe’s celebrated its 20th anniversary. For the past 26 years, the Partnering Artists with Classroom Teachers (PACT) program has served Pre-K through first grade in Prince George’s County, Maryland, with arts integration taught on-site at local schools. In 2016, Joe’s achieved the Standards of Excellence through the Maryland Association of Nonprofits and earned the highest possible rating through Maryland EXCELS based on nationally recognized quality standards and best practices.

Joe’s Movement Emporium serves more than 70,000 visitors annually and anchors the Gateway Arts District of Prince George’s County. The facility produces over 150 public events per year and is home to many resident artists and arts companies who create, rehearse, and perform there. Many artists and artist groups use Artist Services for affordable rehearsal and performance space, and Joe’s facility is a resource for community activity, providing space and production support for large community events such as the Mount Rainier Craft Fair and the Mount Rainier-Gateway 5K. Local families in need of affordable, quality childcare can find it at Club Joe’s and Camp Joe’s.

Visitors can park for free in Joe’s lot to the right of the building, and ParkMobile parking is available on nearby streets, with a request that visitors refrain from parking in residential areas.

Last updated July 20, 2026.