November 6, 2004
Sachiko Nakamura
My good friend Sachi died a week ago, here in my home. She was a creative, life-generating force in this community, and a good friend to (literally) hundreds of people. I was lucky she agreed to spend her last ten days with me. Eight of those days were an almost continuous party, with live music, poetry readings, laughter and and unbelievable amount of food.

Sachiko's art form was performance, but she was a boundary-crosser in the finest tradition of the trickster. She had her fingers in so many pies, that I don't think there's a single one of us who knows about them all. I know she was involved in the civil rights movement in the 60's and met Malcolm X. She was an inspirational feminist at San Jose State in the early 70's, and was active in the Peace movement. She combined elements of Japanese Noh, Butoh, and American solo performance theater to come up with her own art form - Asian American Dance Theater. She founded theater groups, taught dance classes, danced the hula, played the ukulele, practiced Chinese brush painting, taught grade school music classes and college level drama classes, and was a proud, active member of San Francisco's first (and longest running) artist live-work collective, Project Artaud. There will be more Sachi stories at her memorial celebration, 1pm - 4pm on Saturday, November 20, 2004 at Project Artaud Theater.

Official Obituary * Unofficial Biography * Memories of Sachi * At the Memorial
Obit and bio written by Nancy Hom and Betsy de Fries, with additions by Anna Conti

Sachiko Nakamura, 62: Groundbreaking Performance Artist Inspired Many Communities Dancer, activist, and performer, Sachiko Nakamura, who led and inspired many artists on their own creative paths died October 30 after a short bout with cancer. She was 62. Throughout her long career, Sachiko Nakamura drew on her diverse talents and personal experiences to weave memorable performances in theater and dance productions. Her work was tinged with satire and humor, breaking many stereotypes about dance, body shapes - and of being Asian. She was instrumental in the development and conceptualization of Asian American dance, synthesizing her own experiences as a Japanese American into a unique style that incorporated modern dance form with Asian American content. Known for her signature props of toilet paper and bubble wrap, Ms. Nakamura pushed the boundaries of dance and performance art. Born in Oakland Ms. Nakamura graduated from UC Berkeley in 1963 a time of political ferment. Together with her first husband, Ken Nakamura, V.P. of the UC campus chapter of the NAACP, she worked to organize social workers to become Service Employees International Union Local 535.  While studying for her degree in Anthropology she trained in modern dance, ballet, Afro-Haitian and Japanese dance finally obtaining a Masters in dance from San Jose State and beginning a long career in the performing arts. Ms. Nakamura was involved with many progressive activities in the Asian communities of Los Angeles and San Jose. In LA, she was active in the Center for Social Action at the University of Southern California, taught the first Asian American Women’s class at San Jose State and became involved with Asians for Community Action, which nurtured such community organizations as Yu Ai Kai (Japanese Senior services) and San Jose Taiko.   Moving to San Francisco in 1972 Ms. Nakamura became involved with the Asian American arts community where she co-founded the Asian American Dance Collective in 1974 becoming its Artistic Director in 1991. She studied modern dance and choreography under Gloria Unti at the SF Performing Arts Workshop, and performed in the dance and theater company. One of her dances for the concerts, Yellow Peril, featured a running monologue of all the Asian stereotypes as she started to get entangled in a long white cloth. Another dance used auto statistics, specifications and calibrations to describe the Asian woman in the eyes of the Western world. With a team of choreographers the Asian American Dance Collective performed in local venues and toured the country. Ms. Nakamura recruited non-dancers of various shapes and sizes for her “Food Fantasy” series, choreographed in 1978. The humorous pieces – Tempura, Yokan, Sushi, Sweet and Sour Chicken Wings, Cocktails, Tomato Beef Chow Fun and Two Baddest Dudes – fused tap, theater, jazz and modern dance elements. Ms. Nakamura continued to develop a strong partnership with the organization she started and was recently honored at the Asian American Dance Performances’ 30th Anniversary.   She began choreographing when she was 16. Her early training was in modern dance and western theater.  In 1983 she had the honor of performing with Japan’s Cultural Intangible Properties: Shiro Nomura, Master of Noh, and Mansaku Nomura, Master of Kyogen. This was the first time in the 600-year history of the Nogaku that non-family members were privileged to perform with the Nomura family. She studied and performed Noh and Kyogen dance with the Theater of Yugen in San Francisco and Okinawan Classical Dance in Japan and Hawaii. She toured Japan in 1985 along with members of Theater of Yugen. She was among the first Americans to be allowed to perform on the stage of Chison-ji Temple. Their tour culminated at the Tsukuba World Expo in Japan.   Ms. Nakamura also acted in several of the Asian American Theater Company’s productions, including Year of the Dragon and And the Soul Shall Dance. In the mid 1980s she was a member of SoundSeen, a multi-cultural, multi-disciplinary performance art ensemble that included Brenda Wong Aoki, Mark Izu, Lewis Jordan, and Jael Weisman. They created The Land of Ooz and Ahs, Type-O, Seven Steps to Go and Choral Coral, multi-media theatrical works that incorporated jazz, dance, and theater. Her television and film credits include Emiko Omori’s Hot Summer Wind, Wayne Wang’s Eat a Bowl of Tea, and ACT’s production of Taming of the Shrew. Sachiko’s solo career began in 1990 and she toured throughout the United States and Europe performing her one-woman shows incorporating music, dance and text.   She stated that her work was conceptual in that each piece required her to solve a creative problem in a unique and individual way. Layers 1 utilized five pounds of rubber bands and sixty pounds of tissue paper to evoke the memories and tensions of growing up in California’s Japanese-American community.  In Layers 2: Object of Desire, Journey into Womanhood, She experimented with the use of many, many yards of fabric to develop an integrated performance, weaving the sculptural elements of fabric, air and movement with music and words to explore the metaphor of the blood cycle within a woman's life. Another piece, The Fat Lady Sings, explored the devastating effects of eating disorders. Rice: The Ultimate Expression of Life, continued the same process, using rice in its many forms: raw grain, cooked, transformed into costumes, prop and landscape.   Ms. Nakamura also broke ground in the field of education teaching the first Asian American Women's class at San Jose State in the 70s. She also initiated the class, Japanese American Art and Expression, in the Asian American Studies Department at San Francisco State University in the mid 90s. She was a mentor in developing ways to bring Japanese American arts into the Asian American curriculum.   She met her husband, oil painter Dale Erickson, in 1983 and they were married in 1989. Often the model for his photo realistic canvases he painted her image in oils - large and small. The two enjoyed the supportive atmosphere of the arts collective at Project Artaud, in San Francisco, where they both had studios. Their art thrived in that creative environment. Sachiko Nakamura is survived by her husband, Dale Erickson, a brother, Alan Endo, her step-daughter Melanie Abedi and two granddaughters, Elizabeth and Chelsea. A celebration of Sachiko Nakamura’s life will be held at Project Artaud Theater, 450 Florida Street, San Francisco on November 20, 2004 from 1-4 PM.

Biography: Sachiko Nakamura

As a dancer, activist, and performer, Sachiko, or “Sachi” as her friends affectionately called her, led and inspired many artists to continue on their own creative paths. Her awareness of the human condition and politics, along with her passion for the arts, showed everyone ways of living their lives to make a difference in the world. Loving, spiritual, and dedicated, Sachiko touched everyone she met with her creativity, humor, and warmth.

As Russel Baba, musician and taiko performer, put it, “Sachi was one of the most open liberated persons. In dance, she led by example. I will always remember how refreshing and inspiring it was to see folks of all shapes and sizes dancing, performing, and expressing, discovering creativity and building much needed self-esteem.  Sachi is in that first group of Asian American artists who tried to break the stereotypical images held by the public and in our own minds as well. We also recognize that we, our peers, and the younger artists who are now reaching new heights owe much of their success to Sachiko.” 

Born to Eiichi and May Endo on November 15, 1941 in Oakland, California, Sachiko is survived by her younger brother Alan Endo. Her two half brothers, Hiroshi Endo and Katsumi Endo, are both deceased. Their wives and children live in the greater Bay Area.

Sachiko grew up in West Oakland in a house located three blocks from the famous Black Panther house. The neighborhood was mixed with mainly Sicilians, Irish, African Americans and fewer Asians. Her father was a shoe repairer who kept his shop in the front of their house. He was also a landscape gardener, tending a few quite large gardens of professionals in the area. Sachiko remembered fondly the Japanese truck that came to the neighborhood every Wednesday with fresh fish and tofu and other Japanese groceries and comestibles. She attended Westlake Junior High. Among those she remembered and kept in touch with were the Chinese ladies from the Ming Quong Orphanage, who she last saw at the school’s 40th reunion, and Huey P. Newton with whom she took piano lessons and sat next to in fifth grade.

Sachiko graduated from Oakland Technical High School in June 1959 where she excelled in the performing arts and participated in numerous school plays and musicals. She was recognized for her varied and extensive talents and achievements in academics and the arts. Her graduating class awarded her the title of “Miss. Versatility”. She was accepted into Stanford University and also to Mills College but due to financial constraints she chose U.C. Berkeley so she could live at home. She trained in modern dance, ballet, Afro-Haitian and Japanese dance while studying for her degree in Anthropology. Sachiko graduated from UC Berkeley in June 1963. While at Cal, she participated in many activities, including the school resource volunteer program through the University YWCA. She also was active in civil rights activities with the University YMCA where she met Malcolm X in 1963.

She met her first husband, Ken Nakamura, when she was 17 and married him in 1964. Ken was a social worker and an activist who became the Vice President of the UC campus chapter of the NAACP. She referred to him as the activist and herself as the brains. From 1965 to 1968 she worked with Ken to unionize the social workers to become Service Employees International Union Local 535. She began performing under her married name of Nakamura and continued to use that nomenclature even after the marriage dissolved in 1976.

After graduating from UC Berkeley and working briefly in San Francisco, Sachiko moved to San Jose. She obtained her teaching credential from San Jose State in 1965 and taught for two years in the Santa Clara Unified School District. She returned to graduate studies at San Jose State in 1967 to seek a Master's degree in Dance. While living in San Jose, she became active in the anti-war movement, working closely with the San Jose Peace Center. As a member of delegation for the 25th AD Democratic Club of San Jose, she participated in the convention decision to oppose President Lyndon Johnson's re-nomination and to endorse Senator Eugene McCarthy.

In 1968, she moved to Los Angeles and taught in the Los Angeles School District. While living in Los Angeles, she was active with the Center for Social Action at the University of Southern California and the Asian American Political Alliance, and became involved with many communities and performance activities in the Asian communities of Los Angeles.

Sachiko moved to Ann Arbor, Michigan in 1969, where she continued to learn dance with organizations at the university and participated as a volunteer with the day activity program at the VA Hospital in Dearborn, Michigan. In November 1969 Sachiko, together with many citizens of Ann Arbor, Michigan, journeyed to Washington DC to participate in the mass rally against the Vietnam War and President Nixon.

Returning to San Jose in 1970, she resumed her work towards her Masters at San Jose State University and her activities with the San Jose Peace Center. Sachiko choreographed an Asian American History Dance presentation as her Master's project. It involved many men and women and incorporated the experiences of Japanese, Chinese, and Filipino Americans in California. She became involved with the Asians for Community Action organization and took an active leadership role in protesting the fatal shooting of a black citizen by a San Jose policeman. With Sachiko as the spokesperson, Asians for Community Action joined with other 3rd world groups in asking for a community based investigation into the shooting. Sachiko also helped to organize a community picnic and the first community Mochizuki in San Jose Japantown. In addition, the group nurtured the development of community organizations as Yu Ai Kai (Japanese Senior services) and the San Jose Taiko.

After moving to San Francisco in 1972, Sachiko became involved with the Asian American arts community, teaching classes at the Japanese Community Youth Council. She studied modern dance and choreography under Gloria Unti at the SF Performing Arts Workshop, and performed in the dance and theater company. One of her dances for the concerts, "Yellow Peril", featured a running monologue of all the Asian stereotypes as she started to get entangled in a long white cloth. Another dance used auto statistics, specifications and calibrations to describe the Asian woman in the eyes of the Western world. Along with Judith Kajiwara, she co-founded the Asian American Dance Collective (now Asian American Dance Performances) in 1974 and became its Artistic Director in 1991. In the 1970s Sachiko and Judith provided free dance classes to hundreds of Asian Americans in both Chinatown and Japantown. With a team of choreographers that included Sachiko, the Asian American Dance Collective performed in local venues and toured the country. She recruited non-dancers of various shapes and sizes for her “Food Fantasy” series, choreographed in 1978. The humorous pieces – Tempura, Yokan, Sushi, Sweet and Sour Chicken Wings, Cocktails, Tomato Beef Chow Fun and Two Baddest Dudes – fused tap, theater, jazz and modern dance elements. Sachiko continued to develop a strong partnership with the organization she started and was recently honored at the Asian American Dance Performances’ 30th Anniversary.

Sachiko began choreographing when she was 16. Her early training was in modern dance and western theater. In 1983 she had the honor of performing with Japan’s Cultural Intangible Properties: Shiro Nomura, Master of Noh, and Mansaku Nomura, Master of Kyogen. This was the first time in the 600-year history of the Nogaku that non-family members were privileged to perform with the Nomura family. She studied and performed Noh and Kyogen dance with the Theater of Yugen in San Francisco and Okinawan Classical Dance in Japan and Hawaii. She toured Japan in 1985 along with members of Theater of Yugen. She was among the first Americans to be allowed to perform on the stage of Chison-ji Temple. Their tour culminated at the Tsukuba World Expo in Japan.

Sachiko acted in several of the Asian American Theater Company’s productions, including "Year of the Dragon" and "And the Soul Shall Dance". In the mid 1980s she was a member of SoundSeen, a multi-cultural, multi-disciplinary performance art ensemble that included Brenda Wong Aoki, Mark Izu, Lewis Jordan, and Jael Weisman. They created "The Land of Ooz and Ahs", "Type-O", "Seven Steps to Go" and "Coral Choral", multi-media theatrical works that incorporated jazz, dance, and theater. Her television and film credits include Emiko Omori’s "Hot Summer Wind", Wayne Wang’s "Eat a Bowl of Tea", and ACT’s production of "Taming of the Shrew". Sachiko’s solo career began in 1990 and she toured throughout the United States and Europe performing her one-woman shows incorporating music, dance and text.

Throughout her career, Sachiko has drawn on her diverse talents and personal experiences to weave memorable performances for theater and dance productions. Her work was tinged with satire and humor, breaking many stereotypes about dance, body shapes, and being Asian. She was instrumental in the development and conceptualization of Asian American dance, synthesizing her own experiences as a Japanese American into a unique style that incorporated modern dance form with Asian American content. Known for her signature props of toilet paper and bubble wrap, Sachiko pushed the boundaries of dance and performance art.

Sachiko’s work was conceptual in that each piece required her to solve a creative problem in a unique and individual way. "Layers 1" utilized five pounds of rubber bands and sixty pounds of tissue paper to evoke the memories and tensions of growing up in California’s Japanese-American community. In "Layers 2: Object of Desire, Journey into Womanhood", Sachiko experimented with the use of many, many yards of fabric to develop an integrated performance, weaving the sculptural elements of fabric, air and movement with music and words to explore the metaphor of the blood cycle within a woman's life. Another piece, "The Fat Lady Sings", explored the devastating effects of eating disorders. "Rice: The Ultimate Expression of Life", continued the same process, using rice in its many forms: raw grain, cooked, transformed into costumes, prop and landscape.

Sachiko also broke ground in the field of education. She taught the first Asian American Women's class at San Jose State in the 70s. She also initiated the class, Japanese American Art and Expression, in the Asian American Studies Department at San Francisco State University in the mid 90s. She was a mentor in developing ways to bring Japanese American arts into the Asian American curriculum. Sachiko had an Elementary Teaching credential and through her life did lots of substitute work, after-school programs and summer workshops, most recently substituting for Dee Ka’ala Carmack at Sanchez Elementary School teaching music and dance. In 2004 she returned to her weekly hula class with Patrick Makuakane and continued her ukulele studies with the J-Town Hui Ukulele Ensemble. In April 2004 she performed with the J-Town Hui at the 11th Annual Ukulele Festival in Hayward. 

Like most artists, Sachiko worked at a series of non-art jobs, to raise money for her performances and just to pay the bills. Each place she worked, she made new life-long friends and expanded her amazing web of arts connections. She was a waitress at the jazz club, Keystone Korner, an office assistant at Glide Memorial Church, the office manager at Project Artuad, a public school teacher, and a passionate, tireless garage sale organizer. In her spare time she volunteered for the San Francisco SPCA and was one of their chicken rescue workers. Sometimes she'd bring a chicken to the office with her, keep it in a cozy box by her desk, and work the phones all day, trying to convince someone that this chicken would make the perfect addition to the household.

She met artist Dale Erickson in 1983 and married him in 1989. She was awarded her own studio at Project Artaud, the nation’s only surviving non-profit artist live-work community where she also worked for several years as the building’s Office Manager. Sachiko was often the model for her husband’s photo realistic canvases and he painted her image in oils - large and small. The two enjoyed the supportive atmosphere of the arts community at Project Artaud and their art thrived in that creative environment.  Sachiko performed in the public spaces at Project Artuad and her memorial celebration will be held at the main theater there.

Official Obituary * Unofficial Biography * Memories of Sachi * At the Memorial