It was the fall of 2022 and I was attending the One World Festival in my work capacity at the Lancaster County Community Foundation. I purposely came at the time the Latin dance portion was scheduled. It was a dreary Sunday. I was glad to have a family activity to go to. I had started to choreograph again for Grant Street Dance Company and, alongside off-hours work events, I was not at home often. I arrived in full on mom mode with the kids and Andrew just in time.
The performance was amazing. One woman, Jasmin Pantoja, had created 45 minutes of content with seemingly just her family members! How could this be? And how did I not know her? Lancaster is small and the dance community is even smaller. I had recently decided that we would expand our class offerings and do an open audition teacher call to broaden the class selection. I had been secretly hoping to find someone who could teach Latin dance. I needed to meet Jasmin.
Although we were all tired and the kids were ready to leave, I told Andrew I needed to go meet the choreographer. He took the kids to the car while I marched up to a jewelry stand where Jasmin was also selling jewelry. I didn’t have much time so I introduced myself and immediately asked where she taught. She told me she didn’t have a studio space she was using, and I immediately told her we were looking for Latin dance teachers and asked her to come to the audition.
Within a week, she had auditioned, blown us away and was ready to go. We quickly became close friends. I felt from the time she started that she was the adoptive mom of Move It. But I didn’t know how or when it would happen. Our staffing at the time was in flux. Robert, who had brought a certain energy and fabulosity to the studio, was working less. In turn, Meghan and I were working more. I brought Jasmin on to help out behind the scenes.
Over the next two years I would watch her overcome many challenges. And, she would support me through many. I had the opportunity to work with her as a dancer in Mambojaz for the next One World Festival. The cast had grown from about 5 people who were family to twenty people, many of whom were students from her classes at Move It! For me personally, it was an amazing experience to get to dance in a genre I had never done before, Salsa on 2 and to represent the African roots of Puerto Rico in bomba. I had never been in a majority Latino company before! Our finale, from In the Heights, had us all waving flags of Latin American countries and territories at the end. It was beautiful.
As her classes started to grow and the fitness classes started to shrink, there seemed to be a natural progression. My goal at the beginning of Move It had been to bring dance for adults and barre fitness to Lancaster. I would often joke in teacher trainings that we were sneakily teaching all of the elements of dance through Move It Barre. The truth is, dance has always been at the heart of what we do at Move It. Although it was difficult to see some attendance drop in our barre classes, it was exciting to see the growth and energy around dance! So we started to offer more. And then Jasmin’s genius struck, we should offer a performance opportunity for our committed dance students. So we put the Adult Dance Recital out there in combination with her new company’s debut performance. As I write this today, we have 50 adults signed up to perform and are halfway sold out of tickets for this first-of-its-kind performance on December 1.
Friends, as we just celebrate our 10 year anniversary, big changes are in the air. For a while, I’ve been searching for a way to lovingly hand off this sweet baby I’ve nurtured (and had on life support sometimes) over the years. I couldn’t be happier to announce that as of January 6, 2025, Mambojaz Studio will launch at 33 North Market Street. I’m tired and am feeling the need to explore what’s next while prioritizing my loved ones. Luckily, Jasmin Pantoja is ready to launch her own space. Under Jasmin’s direction, you’ll continue to enjoy the Move It fitness classes you love with the teachers you love alongside our growing adult dance classes under the Mambojaz Studio brand. We are making sure that all of the details are taken care of and will communicate them to you with advanced notice. But the purpose of this message is to let you know that I love each of you, I am still going to be here for a few classes a week, and it’s time to let someone else create something new.
When I first opened the doors of Move It Studio ten years ago, I had no idea what to expect. I felt like I was taking the biggest risk of my life, betting on myself in a way I hadn’t in a long time. Hoping that the Lancaster community would be as excited about what we were offering as I was. Signing a one year lease felt terrifying! And exhilarating!
Whether you’ve been with us since day one (I’m looking at you Neil, Meghan, Devon, Regina, Lucy) or you’ve just found Move It, you know that we are a labor of love. I really can’t put into words the numerous people over the years who have made Move It possible. It goes without saying that my incredible teachers past and present with their unwavering commitment are really what makes Move It so special. Here are a few you might not know:
– My dad – Not only did he encourage me to go for it, he has stepped in as a silent investor numerous times throughout the years always with a positive attitude and quiet confidence in knowing it was worth it.
– My mom – Not only has she provided behind the scenes encouragement to me, she worked with my sister to develop our original website and our rebranded one. She’s believed in the Move It vision so much, she’s even helped clean toilets alongside advising on creative vision for the Shop, SEO, and the brand as a whole.
– My sister – The artistic genius behind our logo design and redesign. Along with sounding board for everything from how my class felt to what the name of the studio should be to how to deal with personnel issues. She’s a rock and I know she’ll always give me honest feedback.
– My husband – The one who told me after an original partner backed out that I could still do Move It on my own. The one who built out almost every location, installed everything from sound systems to toilet paper holders. The one who saw the good, bad, and ugly (mostly the latter two) behind running a studio.
– My kids – They’ve never known me without Move It. Paloma was in my belly almost since we opened the first location in 2014 and Rafa was in my belly when we expanded the Manheim Township location. They have seen me give to the studio often more than I give to them. They’ve supported me by giving me courage and believing in me like only children can.
As we navigate this big transition, we are doing it with love and understanding. And, we ask that you join with us in the endeavor! Move It has sparked love through movement for 10 plus years. I can’t wait to see how it grows through Mambojaz.
Marie’s Story – Part VIII 
Marie’s Story – Part VII 