dancer, choreographer, butoh dancer, pedagogue
Tanja Zgonc (1959, Ljubljana) has been a visible figure on the national and international dance, especially butoh, scene for over three decades. She started dancing at the Studio for Free Dance (1978-1984) and Studio of Pantomime, led by the renowned mime artist Andrés Valdés (1979-1985). In 1984 she joined the newly established Dance Theatre Ljubljana, where she danced in a number of successful performances and later also choreographed her own pieces. Her opus thus far includes over 20 dance performances, for many of which she received awards: Yugoslavian alternative actress award (1989), Golden Bird (1992), Golden Stick (1994), Prešeren Foundation Award (2002, for the performance Kagami Reflection) and Povodni mož Award (2002, critics’ choice for the performance Koora). As choreographer and movement adviser Tanja has worked with many renowned directors in over 100 theatre performances in Slovenia and abroad. In 2002 she obtained the assistant professor title at the AGRFT in Ljubljana, in 2007 the title associate professor and in 2012 the title professor of dance and movement. Tanja has been developing her own butoh language for nearly three decades. She was a member of the Cologne-based Ko Murobuschi’s International Butoh Dance Company. She also worked with butoh companies In-Out (Germany) and Su-En Butoh (Sweden). She practiced Japanese butoh with some of the leading masters such as Kazuo Ohno, Yoshito Ohno, Ko Murobuschi, Carlotta Ikeda and Tadashi Endo. Tanja has developed a distinct system and principles of movement, especially of the back, by transforming different dance techniques and movement methods using the methodology of butoh. She is one of the leading butoh practitioners and teaches workshops in Europe, the USA and Japan.
PERFORMANCES
CHOREOGRAPHY FOR VIDEO AND FILM
CHOREOGRAPHY IN THEATRE AND OTHER EVENTS
COLLABORATIONS AS DANCER, CHOREOGRAPHER, DRAMATURGE, ASSISTANT
VIDEO AND FILM
PEDAGOGICAL WORK
OTHER
AWARDS AND ACCOLADES
MORE ON SELECTED PERFORMANCES