Comedy saved her life. Now Teruko Nakajima's 'Made in America' is saving others

Comedy saved Teruko Nakajima’s life.

In 2016, Nakajima received psychiatric attraction astatine Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, diagnosed with depression, PTSD and suicidal ideation. Her doctors searched for ways to negociate her accent by exposing her to assorted activities, including video games, serene Icelandic landscapes and an aerial silks performance. The past brought her anxiousness down, revealing that the arts were the answer. Her doc prescribed the arts, drama specifically, truthful she went to the Upright Citizens Brigade for class.

She recovered a calling and a harmless abstraction successful comedy.

“I didn’t cognize I was calved a comedian,” Nakajima said. “Finally, I truly felt I was accepted arsenic a comedian, validated for who I am.”

Nakajima shares her healing travel to the signifier successful “Made successful America,” which conscionable had an encore show astatine UCB connected Tuesday aft its award-winning tally successful 2022 (it is besides disposable for streaming connected UCB’s website done Tuesday). The one-woman amusement arrives successful clip for the United States’ 250th day connected Saturday, documenting Nakajima’s hunt for the American imagination arsenic a first-generation Japanese American woman. “Made successful America” premiered successful 2022 astatine the Hollywood Fringe Festival during Joe Biden’s presidency and pursuing the Jan. 6 United States Capitol attack. In 2026, its musings connected individuality and belonging pierce done today’s governmental scenery shaped by Donald Trump’s 2nd presidency.

“I wanted to fto radical cognize this is an American story,” she said.

“Made successful America” is astir Nakajima’s life. It begins successful her mother’s womb. She felt truthful harmless there, she yearned to return. Growing up, she experienced an emotionally and physically abusive beingness astatine home, recalling her begetter breaking furnishings and her mother’s alcohol-induced belittling comments. But her name, Teruko, translates to a “shining child.” Thus, she proclaims successful the show, “I’m a superstar!”

The quality successful “Made successful America” is Nakajima’s quality to find the wit successful her trauma. When the amusement transitions to her beingness successful America, she talks astir her beingness arsenic a dominatrix successful New York City and her struggles with romance successful Los Angeles. Her comedic jabs astatine the American system and humorous reflections juxtapose somber moments of stillness successful the midst of her struggles. This equilibrium puts her beingness into perspective, revealing a affirmative property beneath a acheronian saga.

Nakajima performs “Made successful America” astatine Upright Citizens Brigade Theater.

(Nick Rasmussen)

“I look precise happy-go-lucky and cheerful, but actually, I americium a precise acheronian idiosyncratic due to the fact that I person a acheronian history,” she said. “I ever wanted to permission my communicative behind. I wanted to permission my people successful this satellite earlier I died, truthful I needed to marque something.”

The archetypal people Nakajima took astatine UCB was John Flynn’s storytelling course. There, she started gathering pieces of the amusement without realizing it. As they added up, the thought for a amusement surfaced. After people 1 day, she asked Flynn to nonstop it. Flynn, who has been teaching astatine UCB successful New York and L.A. for astir 20 years, agreed.

“She disarms people,” Flynn said. “There’s thing astir her that is conscionable truthful unsocial and truthful delightful that you won’t hide her.”

Flynn archetypal met her astatine his storytelling unfastened mic. She walked successful with her affectional enactment canine Titi (also known arsenic Tiny Teruko), wearing her signature reddish heart-framed glasses, without lenses. Soon, these glasses would marque him treble implicit successful laughter erstwhile she performed and cried, dabbing her eyes with insubstantial done the frame.

“When you commencement to larn her communicative and the experiences she’s had, it is astonishing that she is truthful positive,” helium said. “She’s specified a benignant of undeniable affirmative vigor that she conscionable radiates each the time, which is truthful compelling and wherefore radical are truthful drawn to her.”

Revived astatine UCB amid Trump’s 2nd word and the nation’s 250th birthday, Nakajima’s amusement doubles arsenic a defiant migrant emotion missive to America — and a refuge for audiences feeling alone.

(Nick Rasmussen)

Nakajima puts each of herself into the show. Aside from comedy, she has been a cheerleader successful Japan, a salsa dancer successful New York and a sculptor connected the broadside — she loves sculpting MLB players’ butts; Derek Jeter is her favorite. In the show, she folds these aspects of her beingness into a azygous story, dancing from conception to section. Comedy is much than conscionable laughs; it’s storytelling.

“I americium truthful bully astatine cheering radical up, since I was precise little,” she said. “I had nary contention with others due to the fact that I’m the 1 and only. Nobody looks similar me.”

Together, Flynn and Teruko parsed done her beingness stories to springiness the amusement an arc. For Flynn, it’s similar carving distant astatine what is already determination to make thing amusive and cohesive, similar a sculpture. “What’s amusive astir directing one-person shows similar this is that it’s usually conscionable 2 radical successful a country putting thing together,” Flynn said.

Bringing the amusement backmost this year, the enactment gets sharper and tighter, but the biggest displacement is successful its conclusion. Once optimistic astir the aboriginal of beingness successful America, the amusement present has a stronger tendency to marque change. There was a consciousness of anticipation successful 2022 for women similar Nakajima, an migrant who sought information successful a caller state and struggled with maltreatment from her household and unusual men. Today, arsenic Trump’s migration policies thin connected deportation and discrimination, she simply wants to beryllium seen.

“America, convey you for not giving up connected me,” Nakajima said toward the extremity of the show. She is arrogant to beryllium American, not conscionable due to the fact that she gets to person the aforesaid nationality arsenic her canine Titi, but chiefly due to the fact that of the caller beingness it offered her. America promised happiness. Whether it really comes is different story, but successful this one, the committedness itself gave her a consciousness of purpose.

“After the show, radical travel to maine successful idiosyncratic and done messages,” she said. “A batch of radical said, ‘I felt similar I americium not alone.’ That gives maine truthful overmuch anticipation and unity. I consciousness harmless and similar I person thing to look guardant to due to the fact that I’m not the lone one.”

Flynn realized however overmuch helium took for granted portion moving connected the amusement with Nakajima. “I think, adjacent though these are scary times and things look to beryllium going successful directions that aren’t the best, determination are inactive large people, and there’s thing that is inactive determination and is not dying and is inactive fighting,” Flynn said.

When she began her acting journey, Nakajima thought she’d crook to drama, but there’s thing much unguarded successful comedy.

Nakajima holding up her canine Titi during a show of “Made successful America.”

(Nick Rasmussen)

“I’m precise authentic and invincible done comedy,” she said.

By the extremity of “Made successful America,” Nakajima is nary longer trying to find her mode backmost to her mother’s womb. She is assured successful her spot successful the world. She remembers that she is simply a star. She brings retired her canine Titi, who was hidden connected signifier passim the full performance, and shares that UCB gave her a caller outlook connected life. Comedy breaks distant her stresses and allows viewers to beryllium susceptible with her.

“I ever wanted to consciousness safe,” she said. “I ne'er had that. Finally, I recovered a harmless space, and past I realized that I’m really important. I’m really worthy. I’m truthful blessed close present to beryllium capable to explicit myself done drama due to the fact that it’s the truth.”