Liza Baliasnaja

In a world that is portrayed as dangerous, processes of protective shielding are inextricably linked to our everyday lives. When simplified narrative replaces differentiated discourse, contradictory perspectives are quickly misunderstood as an attack. Shields, walls, gates, and borders are erected to separate and protect the inside from the potentially threatening outside.
In the solo Shield is a Weapon, the boundary between inside and outside, between the self and the other is choreographically explored through movement, vocal soundscapes, and text. The mouth becomes both a shield and a gate, which, once opened, speaks in many tongues and expresses the polyphony of the individual subject.
What other is at work in me? Which invasive voices speak to me? Who guards my throat?
In this piece, choreographer and performer Liza Baliasnaja continues her ongoing exploration of how emotions such as fear and disgust shape our political imagination. This time, the focus is on the symbol of the shield, which offers protection while simultaneously indicating impending conflict. The work examines the ambivalent interplay of vulnerability and aggression, of concealment and confrontation. Through the change of perspective, sometimes behind, sometimes in front of the shield, the work reflects on topics such as (self-)censorship and politics of defence.

For the past ten years, Liza Baliasnaja has been active as a choreographer, performer, and educator – with stations in Lithuania, Belgium, France, and Germany. She studied dance at P.A.R.T.S. and philosophy at KU Leuven. She has been living and working in Cologne since 2023. In her artistic practice, Liza deals with themes such as power, violence, and subjectivity. Her current focus is on emotions such as fear and disgust. She is particularly interested in choreographing with different materials – often integrating voice and text into her body-based research.
Her practice is heavily influenced by collaborations with artists such as Eszter Salamon, Christine De Smedt, Lenio Kaklea, Lina Lapelytė, Ula Sickle, DD Dorvillier and Mårten Spångberg, to name but a few. Her work has been shown at numerous festivals, including New Baltic Dance (LT), Contempo (LT), FAVORITEN (GER), Bâtard (BE), Radiant Nights (BE), and Almost Summer / Feminist Futures (BE). Together with Rūta Junevičiūte, she leads the ongoing workshop series Sore Spots, which deals with unprocessed history manifesting itself in the body.
In 2025, her performance Chiaroscuro was nominated  for Lithuania's highest theatre award, the Golden Stage Cross.
Shield is a Weapon is the first co-production between Liza Baliasnaja and tanzhaus nrw, which also marks her first time performing at tanzhaus nrw.

In English.