Tribal Dancer & Educator
Dana is a champion traditional Native American dancer, arena director, and educator representing both the Menominee Nation of Northeastern Wisconsin and the Prairie Band of Potawatomi Nation of Mayetta, Kansas.
2021 World Woodland Championship
Men’s Woodland Traditional Dance
Theatre Dance Director & Educator
“The only way a culture dies is when people allow it to die. We would like ours to continue. We are putting these dances on tape for the children to learn properly how they are performed.” - Mani Boyd, Menominee Tribal elder.
Dana attributes his commitment to preserving and revitalizing the tribal dances of his elders to a recorded video of tribal dances released in the 1980s. The video made a profound impact on him because he recognized that many of the tribal dances featured in the video recording are no longer performed today.
Dana is working with the Menominee community through their nonprofit organization, Woodland Heart, inspiring their people to enhance tribal identity through the gift of song and dance. One of his life goals is to create a theatre production that honors the traditional social dances of the Menominee people while incorporating modern powwow dance styles. This unique blend will empower the next generation of tribal singers and dancers to stay connected to the Great Lakes woodland identity while using the power of creativity to share modern-day artistic expression.
Dana is a tribal culture bearer and is committed to incorporating tribal beliefs and values into modern-day life. This is reflected in Dana’s focus on developing practical 21st-century educational programs that capture, maintain, and pass on traditional knowledge systems and values to future generations.
Men’s Northern Traditional Dance
Tribal Powwow Dancer
Dana has been powwow dancing since he could walk. His passion can be traced to the generations of his family passing on the knowledge of traditional song and dance through ceremonies and social gatherings. This upbringing, coupled with his encounter with the world-renowned American Indian Dance Theatre and Peter Buffet’s, Spirit Dance further ignited his passion for expression through tribal dance. Dana specializes in men’s Northern Traditional and Woodland style dance.