© Oleksandr Osipov

By Nina Khyzhna

TaO! Theater am Ortweinplatz, Ortweinplatz 1, 8010 Graz
13.06.2025, 19:30

“Someone Like Me” is a performative-physical solo performance by Nina Khyzhna about the journey of a disembodied being through the bodies of others. It learns from the experiences of those who face fear day after day and find ways to resist it. Through the state of its muscles, its movements, habits, and feelings, the being absorbs the experiences of people forced to live in the danger of war. In these people’s physical states and movements, it finds traces of stress, pain, sadness, newly learned survival and combat strategies—but also joy, humor, thirst, and a strange sense of paradox.

The performance is based on a series of interviews with Ukrainians of various professions, genders, and ages—from 6 to 90 years old. Their bodies and experiences vary greatly, yet they can be shared, heard, and attempted to be understood. “Because we all faced a threat and became a collective body, transforming and learning to adapt to a strange reality.”

The central means of expression of the performance is the language of the body – movement and dance, collected from the gestures, associations and everyday actions of the people with whom the project team spoke.

As part of Dramatiker:innenfestival 2025

Supported by “Museum of Contemporary Art” Ukrainian Emergency Art Fund (UEAF) in cooperation with UNESCO, UNESCO Emergency Heritage Fund and UNESCO-Aschberg Artists and Cultural Professionals Initiative

A production by Nafta Theatre