Lynne Yoshiko Nakasone

Okinawan Dancer
courtesy of Nakasone Dance Academy

Bio

For 73 years, Lynne Yoshiko Nakasone has dedicated her life to Okinawan dance through teaching, performing, and choreographing original dances to enrich the art form's repertoire. Born in Naha, Okinawa, Japan, in 1933, into a family that appreciated classical Okinawan music and dance, Nakasone began studying dance under Master Ryosho Kin, beginning at the age of six and continuing until 1955. Okinawan classical dance, also referred to as Ryukyu dance, dates back to the Ryukyu Kingdom and was developed to entertain Chinese envoys and Japanese clans. Featuring slow dance movements and colorful clothing called Ryukyu Bingata, Okinawan dancers use movements of the eyes and hips to tell stories while the upper part of the body remains stationary. In 1955 Nakasone was honored as one of the Best 10 Dancers in an Okinawa dance competition and in the same year moved to Hawaii with her husband. In Honolulu, she began teaching Okinawan dance and founded the Hooge Ryu Hana Nuuzi no Kai Nakasone Dance Academy, where she teaches both traditional Okinawan dance and the modern, upbeat folk style, or minyo, dance. The Nakasone Dance Academy has performed throughout Hawaii and on the West Coast and has been a traditional part of the Hawaii United Okinawan Association's annual festival. In 2006, the Nakasone Dance Academy was recognized by the State of Hawaii for presenting 1,000 goodwill performances. Nakasone's noted performances include a 1968 performance at a special gathering in honor of the Imperial Majesties Prince and Princess Takamatsu; a 1982 performances at the Japan National Dance Theatre in Japan; and a 1985 performance at the Centennial Celebration of Japanese Immigration to Hawaii. In addition to performing and teaching, Nakasone also choreographs new dances for her students, incorporating elements of traditional Okinawan dance into contemporary pieces. In her nomination support letter, Claudia Higa, a student who studied with Nakasone for more than 50 years, writes of Nakasone, "Her nurturing nature and guidance brings multigenerational students together to learn about the Okinawan history, language, and values through dance. [She] is truly a master in the performance and instruction of Okinawan dance." Among her many awards are an Individual Artist Fellowship from the State of Hawaii, a Legacy Award from the Hawaii United Okinawa Association, a certificate of commendation from the government of Japan, and a Living Treasure Award by the Hawaii Buddhist Association. May 20, 2006 was officially proclaimed "Lynn Yoshiko Nakasone Day" by the mayor of Honolulu. two basketsPhoto courtesy of Nakasone Dance Academy
Interview with Lynne and Lisa Nakasone by Josephine Reed for the NEA
October 4, 2012
Edited by Jamie McCrary

NEA: Can you describe what Okinawan dance is and what makes it distinctive?

Lynne Nakasone: Okinawan dance is a classical, contemporary type of dance. It is a folk dance. So hand, body, and eye movement are [all done] quietly. It's not too much moving around. You're telling a story. It's just like a gesture. The very hard part is classical dance. It's very different from other Japanese dance. Okinawa is in Japan, but it's different.

Lisa Nakasone: A lot of the gestures are simple, and slow, and more deliberate. What tells the story is how you use your eyes to portray or explain the story, and where you look. It might take a few seconds just to move your eyes from one corner to the other, but there actually is a tale behind that. In the more contemporary [dances], or the folk ones, a lot of large gestures might explain the story to you, and it's very obvious what the storyline is. But the classical dances are very subtle, and quiet, and more refined.

NEA: I had read that Okinawan dance is frequently performed to poetry that's set to music.

Lisa Nakasone: That's correct. First there's a poem, then they interpret it in music, and then dance.

NEA: What attracted you to this dance form?

Lynne Nakasone: Body movement. My father took dancing lessons and I watched him every day. He took lessons for five years and would take me to the studio where he learned from the Kyosho Sensei.

NEA: Okinawan dance is not a male or a female dance. Both men and women do Okinawan dance.

Lisa Nakasone: Both, yes.

NEA: And the same dances?

Lisa Nakasone: Yes. Males dance female dances, and vice versa.

Lynne Nakasone: To be a good teacher, you have to know both sides, not only what ladies dance if you're a woman. You must learn and practice both versions of the dances, and only then can you teach.

NEA How did people respond to dance in Okinawa? Was it seen as a really rich part of the culture in 1955 when you left?

Lynne Nakasone: Oh, yes. There are a lot of dance studios, and a lot of people who are learning the dance.

Lisa Nakasone: It's very important in their culture.

NEA: Why do you think this dance is so significant to Okinawan culture?

Lisa Nakasone: It's part of their identity. Okinawa was a kingdom, and it became part of Japan. To retain its own identity amongst the Japanese culture, Okinawans have their own language, their own dialect, their own preference in food. Even the dancing is different. The music and the instruments they play are different. The dancing [involves] a lot of different elements. You need the musicians. There's sanshin and koto, which are elements of the music. It's preferable not to use CDs. It's preferable to use the actual players. So, you're looking at a whole bigger culture, not just dancing. It's very important to the culture. They keep their classical numbers very traditional because they just want to keep their identity. They're part of Japan, yes, but they're also Okinawans.

NEA: I wonder if it's maintaining not just identity, but it's a way of telling history.

Lisa Nakasone: Oh, it's definitely part of history. There are a lot of Chinese influences in the dances and in the costuming. Hundreds of years ago they sent envoys to China and brought back a lot of the food and the culture. You can see a little bit of Chinese influence in the kimono and how you wear them, even how they fashion their hair, as opposed to the Japanese culture. And, again, it is not Chinese, it's not Japanese, it's Okinawan. Okinawa has its own identity.

NEA: What are the costumes in Okinawan dancing like?

Lisa Nakasone: The costumes range from an aristocratic court type of costuming to folk. The folk costumes are modeled after farmers in Okinawa. They're very thin and cool because Okinawa is very humid in the summer months. Then they also have the fishing village type of outfits. Okinawa has many different islands.

NEA: And are screens used on the stage? Is it a bare stage or is there a backdrop?

Lisa Nakasone: For the traditional Okinawan stage, there could be backdrops. It really depends. If it's a classical number, they don't want a fancy background. It's a black curtain. A kimono itself is so beautiful that they don't want the backdrop to be a distraction. So, it really depends on what type of dance you're seeing.

NEA: Sensei Nakasone, not only have you made it a point to preserve the traditional dances from Okinawa, but you've also choreographed many new ones.

Lynne Nakasone: I choreograph basic traditional dance. I use this traditional dance, and add a new emotion or a new movement. I try to make it move with the song. Then I teach the dance. I always keep the basic movement of the dance, and just add new emotion and body movement.

Lisa Nakasone: There's a lot of new songs that have come out. Just like the new hits or new pop songs. Every year there's a creative new artist and they write and sing new songs. If it's a good song, we like to use it in the choreography. So if we hear a really nice modern song that we feel we can choreograph to, that's what she does. She uses the basic hand motions she learned as the foundation of these classical numbers, and incorporates it with newer songs that are out there. We also learn the classical numbers that have not changed, but she has choreographed the newer folk numbers and modern songs. So it's an array of dances. The younger kids really like to dance to these because they're fun and energetic [unlike] the slow, classical numbers that are sometimes very, very difficult. You can't really jump into classical numbers. You have to be well trained to do the classical numbers because they're so slow and subtle. So it's the balance [between] both things that she teaches.

NEA: Were you one of her students?

Lisa Nakasone: Yes.

NEA: While studying the dances, did you have a preference for the classical or the contemporary dances?

Lisa Nakasone: I think I like them both. The classical ones can be a huge challenge because of the reasons I mentioned to you. I have certain favorite ones. I find the contemporary ones fun and lively, and the crowd generally loves to see them. When we make a program to do onstage, we try to find a good balance. We're sure to put in the classical and semi-classical, as well as the contemporary ones.

NEA: Were you surprised at how many people in Hawaii were interested in Okinawan dance?

Lisa Nakasone: There's a big Okinawan community in Hawaii, so there's a lot of interest. There are Okinawan Japanese, Okinawan Chinese, and so on and so forth. People love the music, the dance, the costuming. Their grandmothers danced, and so the daughters [danced], and now the grandchild is dancing. It's about perpetuation of the culture. A lot of people in the Okinawan community have gravitated to the culture and the music and the dance. People are very supportive in that respect. They support our dance academy and Sensei Nakasone, too. When there's a function or a recital, Okinawan people come together and try to help each other out. That's what we call the give-and-take---Yuimaru is the Okinawan word for that. But it's not surprising that Okinawan people are so interested in that, because I think it's just a value. When you go back to their roots and how in Okinawa they used to get together, [and, for instance,] celebrate somebody's birthday, they would sing and dance. A lot of third, fourth, and fifth generations see their grandparents do this and they like it. They might not understand the real, deep meaning of the dance, but once they have that interest, they try this culture out.

NEA: There's a general appreciation for what you do, and not just within the Okinawan community, though they might embrace it in a different way.

Lisa Nakasone: Right. She's very interested in community service and community events, so when there are community events and they ask for some entertainment, she's very willing to share. It doesn't matter what nationality, what group, what organization requests our assistance. It's just a matter of this feeling of giving back to the community. If there's an organization that would like some entertainment or some support and we're able to provide that we would like to share our culture with other people as well. We try to expose our culture to different cultures.