Amanda & Lydia: Traces of Your Skin

A contemporary dance piece about the sisterhood of two trans women. A dialogue between bodies, mutual support and an empathetic gaze leave marks on the skin that speak of closeness, comfort and pain.

Sisterhood is not something that is given.

It arises from a gaze that recognises. From a touch that lingers. From the decision to be close to someone, time and again, even though presence is never unambiguous.

Traces of Your Skin is a contemporary dance piece about sisterhood between two trans women. It examines the chosen family as a relationship that emerges from action: through touch, support and gaze. Sisterhood is not based on a shared childhood, but on shared experiences, a sense of kinship and a decision to be there for someone.

In the performance, the bodies touch, support and guide one another. They caress, stroke, hold and release. The movement is built on a relationship in which the other body is simultaneously familiar and changing. The skin acts as a surface on which memories and expectations leave their mark. Safety and comfort are intertwined with fear, envy and pain.

Femininity is presented as a shared experience and a material that feels like one’s own, yet has been shaped by memories and expectations. On stage, there is no resting without being defined by external factors, settling into an embrace and gentle closeness.

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The choreographers and performers of the work, Amanda 007 and Lydia Ofi Teresia, have been working together for over 15 years as friends, sisters and artistic partners in the duo Amanda & Lydia. Their shared movement language has emerged from a long dialogue and shared experiences as performers with a trans background. The work navigates the intersection of contemporary dance, performance art and ballroom, but is built, above all, on the relationship between the performers.

The creative team also includes sound designer Olli Lautiola, lighting designer Kristian Palmu, costume designer Joona Huotari-Andreou and scenographer Landys Roimola, whose work is integral to the work’s movement, body and space.

Traces of Your Skin lingers on what happens between two bodies when there is no need to explain or pretend.

Choreography, dance: Lydia Ofi Teresia
Choreography, dance: Amanda 007
Sound design: Olli Lautiola
Lighting design: Kristian Palmu
Costume design: Joona Huotari-Andreou
Scenography: Landys Roimola

Content note: The performance contains nudity, loud noises, fog machines and flashing lights.

Age rating: 18
Tickets: €20/7 via lippu.fi.