Thoeger Hansen

Biography

FROM DENMARK

TO NEW YORK

Thoeger, also known by his middle name Iana, grew up on a steady diet of 1970s, ‘80s and ‘90s American pop culture including cinema, network and cable TV programming, popular music, comics and other print literature, and the overwhelming force known as the advertising/PR industry.

Thoeger attended NYU film school for two years, worked as a bike messenger and in professional kitchens and dining rooms, and helped launch early Silicon Alley e-commerce/logistics companies before beginning his acting career with the 2005 short film Agent Orange.

Two casting calls in 2019 led to professional relationships that paved the way for Thoeger’s later debuts as executive producer, producer, and director.

First, Alice Camarota cast him in the summer production of Lysistrata she was directing for AlphaNYC at the Producers Club. Five years and five productions later – including Dickens and a bloody, raunchy musical parody called S#IT – with the same director/actor dynamic in place, the two co-produced No Exit at The NuBox in the spring of 2024, and revived it a few months later for Philadelphia Fringe Festival at Philly’s Yellow Bicycle Theater (“the Bike”). Speaking of which…

Joshua Crone cast Thoeger in late 2019 in his original play The Journey, to originate the role of Tom Petty in its three-week run at The Tank in February 2020. Since then the two have collaborated on a number of projects under Crone’s Yellow Bicycle Company banner, including the 2023 feature film Black Box, the September 2023 revival of The Journey at the Bike, and the April 2024 production of An Enemy of the People, again at YBT. Thoeger’s directing debut marks the New York premiere of Crone’s original play A House Divided.

Thoeger was born in Denmark and raised mostly in Hawaii and San Diego. He lives in East Harlem, and in addition to artistic activities enjoys cycling, cooking and bartending.