How much can we choose who we are, and how much of what came before us will always remain within us? Jean-Paul Sartre said, “Man is what he makes of himself,” but each of us has a specific starting point—the body, environment, culture, and historical context in which we are born. Is it possible to completely free ourselves from what has shaped us? How does a person who belongs to two cultures and speaks two languages experience their life?

In the contemporary dance performance "Neither Of”, choreographer and dancer Marija Saveiko combines movement, live music and light to share her personal experience of her identity and sense of belonging in Latvia. Marija comes from a Russian-Belarusian family and grew up in Latvia, a country whose freedom is as young as her generation. Today, she lives in a time when Russia's war in Ukraine has further exacerbated the so-called "national question" in Latvian cultural space. This performance is Marija's personal reflection on her search for herself in a time when different perspectives, identities and cultures meet.

We live in a time when the world is torn by conflicts, when old questions about who is "one of us" and who is "a stranger" keep coming back again and again. But maybe the stranger is not someone else? Maybe sometimes the stranger is the one who considers himself to be one? Is belonging something that is given to us by others, or is it a choice that comes from within ourselves?

"Neither Of" is an invitation to feel – with your body, with your heart. This performance is not just a story about one person – it is an echo from those who continue to search for and find themselves in a world that is constantly changing. The performance raises questions that affect not only Latvia, but the world as a whole, reminding us that regardless of ethnic origin, gender or religion, we are all part of a shared human experience.

After the performance, viewers are invited to stay for a discussion with the creative team to reflect on what they have seen.