Imagine the best dance party of your life. It starts with a mindful multilevel yoga flow to live music, followed by a DJ’d set of the most contagious beats you’ve heard in a long time. Your heart is pounding, you are covered in sweat. And it’s only 7am.

No, this isn’t an all-night dance party that never ended. In fact, it’s quite the opposite. This one starts at sunrise, doesn’t include alcohol and comes with free snacks. If you’re lucky, there might be an electric violinist and a stilt walker. And you’re definitely going to make some new friends. 

This is Daybreaker, the brainchild of founder Radha Agrawal, a supercharged early morning dance party intentionally created to get people moving joyfully and mindfully. In 2013, Agrawal got a big idea to turn nightlife on its head by envisioning a space where people could dance with abandon — sans substances — all before heading to work. And the rest, as they say, is history. Since 2013, Daybreaker has evolved into a community of 500,000 members who wake up and dance together in over 28 cities across five continents. Live events take place in iconic locations such as the Sydney Opera House and on the front lawn of the White House. In response to COVID-19 lockdowns and mental health challenges that followed, Daybreaker+ was launched as an online platform bringing connection and movement into homes across the globe. 

With upcoming events in Miami, Washington, D.C., Atlanta, Los Angeles, Denver and Antarctica, there are ample opportunities to check it out for yourself. Visit their events page for more details and to purchase tickets. Each event offers the option of attending the yoga and dance party separately or as a combined ticket. Bring your own yoga mat and a refillable water bottle; these events are focused on being zero waste.

An outcropping of smaller-scale early morning jam sessions is popping up in lesser-known cities and towns across the country. For example, Abby June Becker and Zoë Roy in Bend, Oregon wanted to create a dance party that didn’t exist in their small mountain city. So they secured a venue, asked a local café to donate coffee, made a playlist and sent a text to their friends. And now, over 100 people attend their quarterly surprise Dawn Dance Parties. Becker points out that though their events are very casual and low production, the “community stoke” factor is high. 

And even if there isn’t yet a formal early morning dance party in your town, you can always grab a friend, make a playlist and set your alarm. Because sunrise dance parties are fitness at its finest — start the day with a good sweat, wild joy and authentic connection, and wellness is sure to follow.