Mayu Nakaya (she/her) is originally from Japan. She began ballet at three and graduated from the contemporary dance course at Tokyo Metropolitan High School of Arts and the dance laboratory | Physical Education at Tsukuba University in Japan. During her studies, she gained extensive experience in contemporary dance, improvisation, and choreography through numerous performances and competition experiences. 

She moved to New York and learned at The Ailey School from 2019-2021. In 2022, she participated in Dancing Beyond, organized by Earl Mosley's Diversity of Dance, and performed "Brimming" (excerpt) choreographed by Jesse Obremski.

Mayu has worked with Helen Simoneau Danse, SAXYN Dance Works, Li Chiao-Ping Dance (based in Wisconsin), Rogue Wave with Catherine Messina, Faustine Lavie Dance Project, One Day Dance, and Six Degrees Dance. Mayu also performed with sarAika Movement Collective, iKADA Contemporary Dance Company, Yoshito Sakuraba, Kanon Sugino, Yu. S. Artistry.

As a choreographer, Mayu has presented her work at several dance festivals in New York, New Jersey, Virginia, Wisconsin, and Japan. In 2016-2019, Mayu received several awards as both a solo dancer and a choreographer in various competitions in Japan and South Korea. 

Nakaya joined Obremski/Works in 2022.