Connecting through Dance: Aya Nakaguchi

SMC dancer Christopher DePiazza works with Aya Nakaguchi’s choreography in a rehearsal for Nakaguchi’s new, not-yet-titled work for Synapse Dance Theater in the Core Performance Center (CPC) on Tuesday, March 12, 2019. Synapse Dance Theater will be presented on Friday and Saturday, May 24 and 25, on the SMC Broad Stage at the Performing Arts Complex (PAC) (Glenn Zucman/The Corsair)

SMC student choreographer Aya Nakaguchi demonstrates a movement for the dancers in her not-yet-titled Synapse Dance Theater piece in the Core Performance Center (CPC) on Tuesday, March 12, 2019. Nakaguchi’s choreographic concept started with a strict grid structure that allowed dancers to move across the stage, or upstage and downstage, but not on diagonals or arcs. Nakaguchi said that as her rehearsals have progressed, the grid remains, but it has softened. Synapse Dance Theater will be presented on Friday and Saturday, May 24 and 25, on the SMC Broad Stage at the Performing Arts Complex (PAC) (Glenn Zucman/The Corsair)

SMC dancers explore movement along a right-angle grid in a rehearsal for student choreographer Aya Nakaguchi’s new, not-yet-titled work for Synapse Dance Theater in the Core Performance Center (CPC) on Tuesday, April 2, 2019. Synapse Dance Theater will be presented on Friday and Saturday, May 24 and 25, on the SMC Broad Stage at the Performing Arts Complex (PAC) (Glenn Zucman/The Corsair)

The unspoken language of dance is universal — hip-hop dancer Aya Nakaguchi traveled from Ishikawa, Japan to study modern dance at Santa Monica College (SMC). Currently in her third year as a dance student at SMC, she has the honor of being a student choreographer for the college's Synapse Dance Theater, whose performance will first debut on Friday, May 24 at 7:30pm and on Saturday, May 25 at 4pm and 7:30pm at The Broad Stage at SMC's Performing Arts Center.

This is Nakaguchi’s first student piece in an SMC dance concert, as well as her first time choreographing a contemporary piece with a large group of 13 dancers. While still a work in progress, she reveals that the movement is inspired by fashion models, but the piece itself is inspired by life and the ups and downs the journey holds.

“No matter what happens, we have to keep going as long as there is a point in front you”

She discloses, “What I heard from my high school teacher, he said, he’s a math teacher, the line is not just a line, it’s formed by so many points. I think the points are the things you have to go through in your life and how you connect those points [to] create your own line, and it doesn’t have to be straight.”

Taking that inspiration into her own choreographic style, Nakaguchi is creating the piece on a rehearsal by rehearsal basis with her casts feelings and personal styles in mind, rather than providing a set combination of choreography. She is constantly newly inspired by fellow dancers and the changing world around her.

Giving more insight to the process, she says, “I came to rehearsal without anything and workshopped with them, trying to find the natural way to move for them, not only for me, cause they’re the ones dancing.”

Nakaguchi will be performing in a total of 3 pieces in the Synapse Dance Concert. She admits it’s tiring, but it’s clear that she absolutely loves everything she is doing.

“No matter what happens, we have to keep going as long as there is a point in front you,” she says with a smile.

Emily Hemelbert (#15), Taylor Sun (#13), Juliet Artiaga (#12) (back row, left to right) and Tiffany Dong (#11) and Letxia Cordova (#20) (front row, left to right) audition for Aya Nakaguchi’s piece in Synapse Dance Theater on Thursday, February 21, 2019 in SMC’s Core Performance Center (CPC). Nakaguchi asked the dancers to move along a grid: across the stage and upstage-downstage, but without making any arcs or diagonals. Within their grid movements, if they encountered the floor or another dancer, they could "give weight" to that person or surface. From Nakaguchi’s simple instruction set a variety of movements and configurations emerged. The auditions are for the upcoming Synapse Dance Theater, which will be performed on the Broad Stage at SMC’s Performing Arts Center (PAC) on Friday and Saturday, May 24 and 25. (Glenn Zucman/The Corsair)

SMC dance major Aya Nakaguchi rehearses for "equalizer_", a new work by guest choreographer Jay Carlon in SMC’s Core Performance Center (CPC) on Tuesday, April 2, 2019. "equalizer_" and Nakaguchi’s not-yet-titled new work are two of the eleven works that will be presented in Synapse Dance Theater on the SMC Broad Stage at the Performing Arts Center (PAC) on Friday and Saturday, May 24 and 25. (Glenn Zucman/The Corsair)

SMC student choreographer Aya Nakaguchi (top) works with Alyssa Fletcher (bottom) to fine tune a movement sequence in Nakaguchi’s new, not-yet-titled work for Synapse Dance Theater during a rehearsal in the Core Performance Center (CPC) on Tuesday, April 2, 2019. Synapse Dance Theater will be presented on Friday and Saturday, May 24 and 25, on the SMC Broad Stage at the Performing Arts Complex (PAC) (Glenn Zucman/The Corsair)