Erna Ómarsdóttir, artistic director of Iceland Dance Company, graduated from PARTS (performing arts research and training studios) in 1998. Following her graduation she worked with Jan Fabre, Ballet C De la B, Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui and became a founding member of the collectives Ekki (Reykjavík) and Poni (Brüssel). She has created and directed a number of works for Iceland Dance Company, including We are all Marlene Dietrich FOR (2005) in collaboration with Emil Hrvation (Janez Janza) and Transaquania – out of the blue – (2009) and Transaquania – into thin air (2010) in collaboration with Damien Jalet and Gabríela Friðriksdóttir. In 2018, Erna created, in collaboration with Icelandic choreographer Halla Ólafsdóttir, a brand new version of Shakespear’s very own Romeo and Juliet for the Gartnerplatsteater in Munich.

In 2008 Erna and Valdimar Jóhannsson founded the performance group Shalala. Shalala has produced numerous dance- and performance pieces that have been presented at leading performing arts festivals and theatres worldwide. Valdimar and Erna also form a theatrical band called LAZYBLOOD.

Erna Ómarsdóttir has worked closely with visual artist Gabríela Friðriksdóttir and musicians Björk, SigurRós, Ólöf Arnalds Jóhann Jóhannsson and Ben Frost. She was an associate director of Les Grandes Traversees in Bordeaux France in 2007 and co-artistic director of Reykjavík Dance Festival 2014. Erna has been nominated a number of times for her work in Ballet Tanz annual reviews, she is a recipient of the Iceland Performing Arts Awards and a resident artist of APAP – advancing performing arts project, a European network connecting international and local aspects of contemporary arts.