Malviniemi Company: Etched in the skin premiere 16.10.2025
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Premiere of the dance piece Etched in the Skin on 16 October 2025
Etched in the Skin is a dance performance that reflects the landscapes of the body through touch.
The work is part of the project Dance at All Ages, which brings together older participants and professional dancers. The project aims to create encounters and interaction between seniors and professionals in the field of dance art.
The choreographer of the piece is dance artist and pedagogue Nanna Rahikainen, who has worked for over a decade with a dance group for people over 65.
“At the heart of this group and our work lies a safe and creative space that we have built together over the years. When we dance, what matters most is sharing the space and the moment in community and interaction. We don’t think of the dancers in this group as divided between professionals and amateurs. Everyone contributes equally with their experience, personality, and presence to what unfolds in the work.”
Rahikainen hopes that both audience and dancers will share the experience together during the performance.
“It would be wonderful if people experienced our performance as a warm embrace – leaving touched, and somehow richer than when they arrived.”
The group’s professional dance artists are Ailish Maher and Riina Kalmi.
Riina Kalmi is a dancer and dance artist from Isojoki. She works in contemporary dance and improvisation. In recent years, she has expanded her expertise into the field of culture and wellbeing and has trained as a facilitator in dance and movement therapy methods.
“The process of this work and the group’s interactive approach have moved me with their authenticity. The movement languages expressed by each person present are so genuine and sincere that I sometimes start to question what truly belongs to me and what is shaped by my training.”
According to Kalmi, the best thing about the group is its acceptance of differences and diverse voices, and how these are embraced as part of a shared dialogue.
“Everyone is allowed to have their own opinion. Differences of view are part of the process, but there’s no need to get stuck in them. Everyone is seen and heard, and every perspective is valuable.”
Ailish Maher is a dance artist based in Vaasa. Her practice spans choreography, performance, writing, and film.
“The process of this work and the group’s working method have been, for me, a deeply healing experience. The freedom to be as you are, present with others, together around this work, is inspiring. You can sense that the group, through its years of collaboration, has created such a safe space that it’s easy for anyone to step in with their experiences and personal history.”
Maher does not distinguish between professionals and amateurs within the group’s work.
“I think the boundaries and differences blur when we are genuinely physically present and within each other’s influence. You can be moved by anyone’s movement, and every movement dialogue is unique – shared between two equal human beings.”
Performances at Vaasa City Library’s Drama Hall:
16.10., 20.10. and 22.10. at 18:00
Ticket reservations: malviniemi@gmail.com
Tickets: €25.00 / €15.00 (unemployed, students, pensioners, professional tickets)
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Category:
Esitykset