Isabel Gotzkowsky and Friends (IGaF) was founded in 1998 as a not-for-profit dance company focusing on technical and expressive excellence.  Artistic Director Isabel Gotzkowsky established the company as a vehicle through which to communicate her ideas about movement and its potential to demonstrate the nature of the human condition.  Her background in movement science has allowed her to focus on the kinetic capacity of the body, both as a physical and an emotional instrument.

Isabel is a self-taught choreographer.  Her choreographic craft stems from intuition and observation.  As a dance artist, her primary link to movement is a passion for the deep communication available through the body. Her work, therefore, focuses on relationships – to the self, to a partner, or within a group.  Often the work will present different aspects of a social structure, demonstrating the dynamic tensions that are inherent between individual desire and the collective need.  In many ways, her interests stem from her own shift between cultures.  Born and raised in Germany, Isabel came to the US as an adult. Faced with a different social construct she determined that there are many ways to view the self and the individual’s role in society.  To sort through these ideas, she began to make dances.

As well as performing in traditional venues for concert dance and teaching in established programs, IGaF seeks to travel to communities around the world that have less opportunity to see and study modern dance. Involvement with these communities not only includes performances by the company, but also employs an interactive approach to encourage dance enthusiasts of all levels to take part in classes, workshops, and ultimately to perform themselves.

IGaF recognizes the inestimable value to dance of the collaboration and support of artists from other fields, such as music, the visual arts and theatrical design. In addition to having formed lasting relationships with other artists, IGaF welcomes opportunities to expand beyond existing ideas and structures by meeting and working with new collaborators.