Biography

Dana Iova-Koga

Dana Iova-Koga began her intensive study of dance at New York University's Experimental Theater Wing, under teachers Tamar Rogoff and Mary Overlie. As a student at NYU she performed in productions directed by Annie B Parsons & Paul Lazar (“Little, Big”) and Maureen Flemming (“Mondala” 92nd St Y.) She went on to tour Eastern Europe with La MaMa's Great Jones Repertory Company in a dance opera version of “Oedipus”.
Her exploration of dance deepened when she joined Min Tanaka's farm and dance company, Tokason, in the countryside of Japan in 1997. From 1997-2002, she danced in many performances and diverse venues under Tanaka’s direction. The first of which, “The Poe Project”, with libretto by Susan Sontag, played at PS 122 in New York, Jacob’s Pillow in MA, and the Setagaya Public Theater in Tokyo. Other large-scale productions included “La Conquista” in 1998, “Romance” in 1999, and “L’historie du Soldat” (composed by Stravinski,) in 2002. “Los Caprichos”, a series of performances inspired by the black and white etchings of Francisco Goya, spanned 3 years and was performed in rice fields, forests and museums throughout Japan as well as at PS1 Contemporary Art Center in NY, JAACC in LA, and at international festivals in Belgium, Spain and Italy. Within the same period of time, Iova-Koga also danced in numerous Tokason productions at Plan B theater in Tokyo including “ Broken Hearted Wind,” “Kidnapping, “Standing in the Bones,” “Matchiai” “The Color of Spring” and “ Liberation From the Freedom.”
Since moving to Maui in 2003, Iova-Koga has continued to explore the body in relation to nature, and has performed solo in “Firefall,” 2003, “drop deep suite,” 2005 and “May’s Landing,” 2005. In September 2005 she performed in “Rose Colored Mountain” as part of a site-specific event directed by Shinichi Iova-Koga in the wilderness of Montana.