In Your Skin Studio

In Your Skin Studio is an adult dance and movement studio founded in 2018 by Sada Velasquez, a self-taught pole dancer who won Miss Pole New England in 2012. The studio now occupies a 1,500-square-foot flagship space at 21 Broad Street in Pawtucket with eight poles, seven aerial silks, and two portable pole stages for events. What began in a 750-square-foot living room has grown into Rhode Island's only dance studio built on the principle that dance belongs to everyone, and the room must reflect that.

You can take classes in six disciplines: pole (with levels from beginner to advanced), heels, contemporary, Latin (bachata and salsa), Afrobeats, and hip hop. All classes are levelled and meet you where you are. Beginner pole classes cover technique and confidence; intermediate and advanced options build inversions, transitions, and choreography. Latin classes range from Bachata Level 1 through Salsa Level 2, all without requiring a partner or prior experience. Heels classes teach balance and posture through beginner fundamentals and choreographed routines. Contemporary, Afrobeats, and hip hop classes welcome all levels.

Sada is a 200-hour Registered Yoga Teacher (certified twice), trained in children's yoga, and holds a 650-hour massage therapy license. The studio's mission is rooted in three core principles: inclusive by design (every class built around radical accessibility), safer by policy (zero tolerance for harmful behaviour), and meeting students where they are. A weekly donation-based heels class ensures cost is never a barrier. In 2025, IYS was named Best of Rhode Island for Inclusive Dance Space. In 2026, Sada completed the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses programme.

Special events services include choreography for weddings and quinceañeras. Wedding packages start at $499 for a single choreographed first dance with four private rehearsal sessions, up to $749 for two dances with five sessions. Quinceañera packages range from $999 (starter, with two dances and up to six performers) to $1,999 (full production with three dances and up to fourteen performers); all include rehearsals at your venue and instructor day-of support.

The studio released a feature documentary, Every Day Burns (2020), directed independently, documenting Sada's journey and the community's rise. Student feedback consistently describes the space as therapeutic, a place of belonging, and a return to confidence in their own bodies.

Walk in to a supportive, judgement-free environment where you'll be met exactly where you are. Instructors are trained to make first-timers welcome from the door. Most students describe feeling nervous beforehand and like family afterward. Classes are booked in advance through the online portal, and you'll receive a 'what to expect' email after booking that covers everything specific to your chosen class.

Sada Velasquez is the founder, owner, and an instructor. She is self-taught in pole (since 2009), Miss Pole New England 2012, a twice-certified 200-hour Registered Yoga Teacher, trained in children's yoga, and holds a 650-hour massage therapy license.

All beginner classes are built for absolute beginners; you do not need flexibility, fitness, rhythm, or prior experience.