This Artistic Exhcange Residency serves as a research and development phase for the new work Drummer boy, which will be completed in 2027. This is the work’s first rehearsal and development period.

In Drummer boy, two boys find themselves on the brink of the end of the world. They drum with their bodies and instruments, creating images of animal hunting, parades, natural phenomena, love and sex. They attempt to construct different perspectives on the apocalypse on stage in order to understand collapse—not as a singular end of the world, but as a transformation in the relationships between people, society, nature and time.

Janina, Leo and Janne met while working at Norrdans in Sweden and share an interest in developing a collaborative artistic practice. The working group will later be joined by sound designer Tuuli Kyttälä, costume designer Kirsi Gum, and spatial and lighting designer Katinka Ebbe.

During the residency, the group also aims to become acquainted with Montpellier’s dance scene, local dancers and dance organisations, and in particular with Agora Cité Internationale de la Danse, which represents a new working environment for the group.

Janina Rajakangas is a Helsinki-based choreographer. At the heart of her artistic practice is the dancing body’s potential to dismantle and challenge the rules imposed on the body in everyday life. In her practice, Janina combines artistic ambition and uncompromising commitment with an openness to encounters between people from different backgrounds.

Her choreographies reflect an appreciation of diverse representations of humanity, expressed through socially engaged artistic practice. Her artistic work has addressed, among other themes, the sexualisation of teenage girls (Venus, 2022), inclusivity as choreography (Dancer, 2023), the position of ageing women in Nordic societies (Look me in the eyes, 2025), and children’s agency and the politics of human impact on other species (Floor is lava, 2025).

The productions of Janina Rajakangas Project have been presented and her work supported at, among others, Zodiak – Center for New Dance, CODA Oslo International Dance Festival, Dance House Helsinki, Kiasma Theatre, The Place Theatre, Moving in November, and Baltic Circle International Theatre Festival. In 2026, Janina was awarded the Tanssin Maineteko Award.

Find her website here.

LEO (刘畅 / LIU Chang) is a Wuhan-born Chinese dancer, performer, filmmaker, and artistic researcher based in Sweden since 2019. Their interdisciplinary practice brings choreography into dialogue with moving image, interactive digital systems, text, and performative documentation. Their work explores queer embodiment, cultural memory, Chinese philosophical traditions, and participation. After six years with Norrdans, LEO is currently pursuing an MFA in New Performative Practices at Stockholm University of the Arts.

Janne Aspvik (1979) is a professional dance artist and musician based in Helsinki Finland. He has studied music and played drums in bands since the early 90 ‘s and graduated with a degree in dance arts from Uniarts Helsinki ’s Theatre Academy in 2010. He has worked as a dancer with choreographers such as Tero Saarinen and Janina Rajakangas. He has also made his own choreographic works since 2012.