Dave Iwataki Presents the J-Town Bronzeville Suite

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Free, outdoors and all-ages

A powerful performance blending the soulful rhythms of jazz, the intricate beauty of traditional Japanese music, and evocative dance to bring a little-known chapter of Los Angeles history to vivid life.

Did you know that during World War II, Little Tokyo was temporarily renamed Bronzeville?

After Japanese American residents were forcibly removed from their homes and incarcerated in internment camps, African American workers - many of whom had migrated from the Deep South in search of wartime jobs—moved into the vacant neighborhood. What followed was a brief yet profound cultural convergence: jazz filled the streets where taiko once echoed, gospel mingled with shakuhachi melodies, and two displaced communities coexisted amid systemic injustice and survival.

J-Town/Bronzeville Suite is more than a performance - it is a living remembrance. Through original music, choreography, and narrative, this piece explores themes of identity, resilience, and shared struggle in a time of profound social upheaval. This is the untold story of two communities bound by history, geography, and the enduring power of culture.

Composed, Produced, and Written by: Dave Iwataki

Directed by: Alison De La Cruz

Filming Directed by: Akira Boch

Narrator: Greg Watanabe

Featuring Musicians:

• Madame Matsutoyo Sato
• Marisa Kosugi
• Theo Saunders
• Nori Tani
• Henry Franklin
• Yuki Yasuda
• Don Littleton
• Keith Fiddmont
• Nancy Sekizawa

Featuring Dancers:

• Azuma Kotobuki Kai (featuring Nicole Kimiko Kaichi Matsuoka & Miranda Emiko Kealy)
• Pat Taylor’s JazzAntiqua

Sponsors: J-Town/Bronzeville Suite is funded by a California Civil Liberties Public Education Program grant.

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