Queer Dance Performance and Facilitation Collective

Riiviöt is a Finnish word to call a rascal. It describes a rebel child or a mischievous animal. Historically it was a Finnish name for a devilish creature.

For our collective, the term speaks of troubling existing systems and structures, of centering agency, autonomy, and care, and instigating change through playful action.

Initiated by dance artists Eevi Kinnunen and Tasha Hess-Neustadt, Riiviöt works collectively with an evolving network of collaborators. The collective operates primarily between Finland and Germany, creating contemporary dance works for both young and adult audiences.

Eevi Kinnunen

Eevi Kinnunen (they/he/she) is a Finnish dance artist working in performance, choreography, and improvisation. Eevi works both solo and in collaboration with other artists, often drawing from, and expressing the queer experience through body, voice, sound, video and material. She is passionate and active in being part of creating safer spaces for dance to be created, practiced, and enjoyed in. Eevi is an alumni of North Karelia College Outokumpu Riveria and London Contemporary Dance School. She has worked and collaborated with artists such as Simone Mousset (Empire of A Faun Imaginary 2022-23), Sophia Rodríguez (Friction project research 2021) and David Zambrano (Las Morochas 2021) as a performer. Eevi is part of Project.tghtr an artistic collaboration and companionship with Olivia Ronzani and is a co- founder of the queer collective ‘Riiviöt’ with Tasha Hess Neustadt. Their recent premieres of their own works include ‘A Long Story About Our Baby’ (2023) and ‘Super We, Super Me’ (2022/23) and they have recently published with Riiviöt an illustrated Zine about queering dance for young audience. Currently Eevi is on tour with ‘A Long Story About Our Baby’ & ‘ Super We, Super Me’ and is working on a new production ‘lempi, lempee’ with dance artist Marikki Nyfors.


Tasha Hess-Neustadt (they/them) is a dance artist, performer, and choreographer. Their practice spans contemporary dance, improvisation, physical theater, and vocal work. As a performer, they work with choreographers and artists including Léonard Engel, Katharina Senzenberger, Collette Sadler, Alexander Schubert, Simone Mousset, Sasha Amaya, Livia Rita, Fernanda Muños-Newsome, Monika Dorniak, Dan Su, among others. In their choreographic work, Tasha is often working with themes of construction and deconstruction, utopian and dystopian imaginaries, exploring the materiality of the body and sometimes its reach into the digital sphere.  Tasha’s own works have been supported by venues and institutions across Germany, France, Finland, Sweden, and the UK, including, Offensive Tanz für Junges Publikum, TANZKOMPLIZEN im Podewil, FELD Theater, TEHDAS Teatteri, Live Art Society Helsinki, Northern Sustainable Futures / imKONSTHALL Gallery, Festival de VideoDanse de Bourgogne, Theater Freiburg International Screendance Festival, Schwere Reiter Munich, Gallus Theater Frankfurt am Main, Delphi Space Freiburg and Tanzzentrale der Region Nürnberg e.V., AURORA XR Fellowship Berlin, among others. Interested in collective work, Tasha is a founding member Munich-based Riess Neustadt collective, together with Fabian Riess, as well as Riiviöt, together with Eevi Kinnunen. They are an alumni of London Contemporary Dance School BA(Hons) 2020, and previously trained at The Ailey School (NYC).

Tasha Hess-Neustadt

Lisa Kalkowski

Lisa Kalkowski (she/her) joined the Riiviöt-collective this past spring 2024 as a producer. Lisa has many years of experience in the performing arts, particularly in dance. Riiviöt’s artistic approach and ethical context meet Lisa’s core values in her work, which is why she is especially excited about her new role within the collective! Having spent much of her career in the Finnish art scene, this position also allows her to reconnect with Berlin, where she studied. Lisa is also the producer of UrbanApa art platform and works freelance with DEI workshops and project coordination.

Collaborators

Dance Artist

Marikki Nyfors

Dramaturgs, Editors

LIK Kollektiv - Nora Tormann & Lonnie Jasper

Stage & Costume Designer, Illustrator

Helene Scheithe

Stage & Costume Designer

Katri Saloniemi

Sound Designer

Gil Schneider

Dramaturg

Canan Erek

Stage & Costume Designer, Video Designer, 3D Designer

“Lucy” Louis Caspar Schmitt

Producer

Falk Grever

Dance Artist

Olivia Ronzani

Dance Artist, Choreographer

Sari Palmgren

Dance Artist, Choreographer

Sophia Rodriguez

Sound Designer

Keliel / Eliel Tammiharju

Dance and Music Artist

Nora Wyss

Live Artist and Theatermaker

Ivor MacAskill

Playspaces and Participatory Art, Music, Games, Empowerment

Sarah Fartuun Heinze

Performance Collective

CHICKS* Kollektiv -Gianna Pargätzi