NAKA Dance Theater

Founded in 2001 by José Ome Navarrete Mazatl and Debby Kajiyama in Oakland, California, NAKA Dance Theater creates experimental performance works using dance, storytelling, multimedia installations and site-specific environments. They are honored to launch their 25th Anniversary year by showing work at Movement Research at Judson Church. NAKA cultivates partnerships with communities, engages people’s histories and folklore and expresses experiences through accessible performances that challenge the viewer to think critically about social justice issues. Recent collaborations include Ja weya ob’aj wij, ex weya nchemaj (My Story, My Weaving), a devised installation-performance work created with Indigenous Maya Mam Women weavers living in Oakland, and Dismantling Tactic X: Fugitivity, a creative response to xenophobia and the threat of mass deportations. In addition to their performance work, NAKA co-produces Live Arts in Resistance (LAIR) in partnership with EastSide Arts Alliance. LAIR is a dynamic series of performance showcases, artist residencies, and community town halls that address racial inequity and white supremacy in popular culture. @nakadancetheater

  • Fall 2025 MR@Judson Artist
Two people face each other against a dark background with dramatic lighting. The both have brown skin and dark hair and have their hands raised in between them. The image is slightly blurred in movement. Photo by Robbie Sweeny
ID: Two people face each other against a dark background with dramatic lighting. The both have brown skin and dark hair and have their hands raised in between them. The image is slightly blurred in movement. Photo by Robbie Sweeny