Mina Nishimura is a dance artist originally from Tokyo, Japan. Buddhism-influenced concepts such as emptying, forgetting and inter-being-ness are reflected across her butoh-grounded somatic performance and choreographic practices. 

After graduating from Ochanomizu University in Tokyo, she was introduced to butoh and improvisational dance through Kota Yamazaki’s teaching while attending an international program at Merce Cunnigham Studio in New York. Since 2003, she has been performing and collaborating with ground breaking choreographers such as John Jasperse, Neil Greenburg, Vicky Shick, Yasuko Yokoshi, Dean Moss, Rashaun Mitchell + Silas Riener, Kota Yamazaki, Nami Yamamoto, Ursula Eagly, RoseAnne Spradlin, David Gordon, DD Dorvillier, Daria Fain, Trajal Harrel, Yoshiko Chuma, Mårten Spångberg, Cori Olinghouse, Moriah Evans, Ellen Fisher, Chantal Yzermans, Satoshi Haga amongst many others. 

She also has performed with SIA on Saturday Night Live for her guest performance of her hit songs, “Alive” and “Bird Set Free”; in PRADA’s Woman’s Tales film (The [End) of History Illusion] directed by Celia Rowlson-Hall; in Late Sea’s MV- Hunter directed by Noka Productions; in Haruki Murakami’s The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle directed by Stephen Earnhart; and in Harry Partch’s opera Delusion of Fury directed by John Jesurun. 

Upon her return from Senegal (2003-04) assisting cultural exchange dance project, FAGAALA, choreographed by Germaine Acogny and Kota Yamazaki, Nishimura started making her own choreographic work. After her first evening-length work TUNA (2007) commissioned by Dance Theater Workshop/Studio Series followed by Me Singing (2008) commissioned by The Kitchen/Dance and Process and Timmy’s Idea (2009) commissioned by Dance Theater Workshop, Nishimura presented her second evening-length work, Sandwoman (2011), through the Artist-In-Residence program at Brooklyn Arts Exchange. During these years, Nishimura was invited to the DunaPart Festival (Budapest) through DTW’s Suitcase Fund (2008), and to Impulse Tanz (Vienna) as a danceWeb scholar (2009).

Through the creation of Princess Cabbage (2014), and Quiet House, Ash Daughter (2014), commissioned by Mount Tremper Arts Center, Nishimura further studied Tatsumi Hijikata’s butoh scores and investigated possibilities for more profound and active relationships between “images” and “movements” without getting stuck in existing “meanings” and “symbols”. The development of these works was supported by Artist-In-Residence programs at Movement Research (2013-15), Chez Bushwick (2014), and The Japan Foundation’s New York Grant for Arts and Culture. 

With Bladder Inn (and X, Y, Z, W) (2018), commissioned by Danspace Project, Nishimura investigated interconnections between visible and invisible beings, and bodies that keep slipping away from present space and time before solidifiying. The work was developed through a creative residency at The Camargo Foundation (France) with support from The Jerome Foundation and Movement Research, and received an additional support from The Foundation for Contemporary Art’s Emergency Grant. Her other recent choreographic works include: Sinking While Floating, Singing While Thinking (2018) commissioned by Gibney Dance, Hi, Merce! I Have a Question. (2019) commissioned by NYU Skirball Center with the support of Merce Cunningham Trust, and Disappearing Altogether (2021) commissioned by Sarah Lawrence College. 

She was one of the curators for Movement Research’s Spring Festival (2014), Danspace Project/Food for Thought (2016), Mount Tremper Arts Center’s Watershed program (2018), Sundays on Broadway at Cathy Weis Project (2018), and is currently a member of the curatorial team of whenever wherever festival in Tokyo. 

During these years, she has taught at Sarah Lawrence College, Bennington College, UC Davis, Ferris University (Japan), the Intensive Dance Program at Dance Box (Japan), Movement Research, and Brooklyn Studios for Dance. She received her MFA at Bennington College in 2021, where she currently teaches.

She was named as one of Best Performers in Dance Magazine in 2018, and received a Foundation for Contemporary Arts Grant and Artist Award (FCA Award) for her choreography in 2019.