Kevin Suzuki began his training in Japanese folk dance at the age of five, learning traditional dance technique from Momo Suzuki, his mother and the founder of The Japanese Folk Dance Institute of New York (JFDINY). Almost immediately, Kevin began performing with Minbuza, the professional troupe of JFDINY, appearing at venues such as The Metropolitan Museum of Art and Asia Society.
Kevin ascended to the position of Director of JFDINY in 2020. Recent performance credits with JFDINY include the Brooklyn Botanic Gardens Cherry Blossom Festival, Fort Wayne Dance Collective’s “Shino Shadows”, Hub City Opera’s production of “Murasaki’s Moon”, and “Hidden Faces and The Harvest”—JFDINY’s collaborative performance featuring Japanese and Indonesian traditional dance.
For JFDINY, he also serves as head choreographer, with work including a residency at Boston University for Ronald Richardson’s play “Kamioroshi” (2018), Lan Tsubata’s independent dance film “Dancing Joy” (2020), and fashion brand Public Policy’s Fall Show at Fashion Week New York (2023).
Kevin has also served as a cultural and movement advisor to numerous opera companies (primarily for productions of Madame Butterfly) including Portland Opera, Atlanta Opera, and Dallas Opera. He has also provided movement workshops for Heartbeat Opera, Sarasota Opera, and Carolina Opera. Lastly, his choreography work can be seen in Divaria Opera Company’s 2024 production of Madame Butterfly in Long Island, NY.
