Opera Thoughts

My May Day really wasn't all sitting around this year! You've already read about the actual May Day with the wild concert at Seinäjoki... But the day before, May Day eve - the Finnish holiday solely dedicated to getting drunk and, if possible, having fun while doing so - I went to see something very different.
Me and my friend went to Turku, to Åbo Svenska Teater, to see Ooppera Skaala's touring production of Fitness Light Opera.

Our reasons for seeing it were less to do with admiring the artform and more to do with everything else: we wanted to revisit the theatre for old times' sake. It also helped Sören Lillkung (Javert in ÅST's Les Mis) was a part of the cast. I admit, however, that I wouldn't have seen it unless my friend couldn't have stayed in Turku for the night without me (a relative of mine has a handily situated apartment in Turku and she's generously letting me visit when needed). I didn't think dragging myself to see an opera in a town 200 kilometers away would be worth the trouble.

I've seen a handful of operas before.
First, when I was a kid, it was my mom's futile attempt at trying to force some general knowledge about different artforms into me: she sometimes took me to National Opera to see an opera or a ballet. Too bad for my mother's poor nerves that the only things I was really interested in were cake and lemonade during the intermission...
But lately, tables have turned: I've actually dragged my mom to the opera a couple of times. Operas, after all, are kind of like musicals' ancestors. Some musicals are even based on operas! With the amount of time I spend seeing and thinking about musical theatre, I keep feeling I should educate myself about opera every now and then, too...
The only downside is that I often get bored when sitting in National Opera's auditorium.

Well, it's not 100% bad... I greatly appreciate opera singers, for instance. I've no idea how human beings can sing like that, it's amazing! What's more - while I find some of the music a bit bland, I do enjoy some of it. I even have La bohème on CD.
But, as a whole, I find many of those old operas boring as tar. Even though the singers are impressive, the music is grand... It feels to me that a scene that'd take two minutes in a movie, play or musical lasts for at least fifteen minutes in an opera. It often seems to me that arias and duets take an eternity, that verses are repeated until you feel you could recite them in Italian yourself.
What adds to the misery is the feeling that most of the operas I've seen in Finland's National Opera haven't been strongly acted. I don't know, maybe it's because they perform an opera for a month, put the production away for five years and then do another month, with another cast... Maybe they just don't get enough time to get used to their roles? I don't know, but I'd surely love to see some stronger acting.

That brings me to what I liked about the light opera: there actually was some acting. Even though - there being no microphones - the cast sung facing the audiece even during duets, you mostly felt you're watching the people the story is about instead of singers trodding around onstage. Everybody also sung beautifully.
What's more, the light opera had a pretty nicely paced plot. The scenes moved like they would in a play or a musical, there weren't many unnecessary repeats. The plot, in a nutshell, was about a fat guy who wanted to date a popular girl but had to lose weight to attract her attention, and the way his diet affected him, his family and his friends. The story got rather silly by the second act, with the doping subplot kicking in, and the ending was a bit underwhelming, but at least you didn't have the time to get bored.
I also enjoyed the music. It was done in the style of baroque operas, and it was pretty fun to hear that kind of music with modern lyrics. I've never heard opera sung in Finnish before, and I got to say, it sounded pretty nice! I liked the way one of the characters sung in Swedish every now and then - it added comedy but also sounded interesting, being sung at the same time with Finnish.

My main problem with Fitness was what it looked like. There's no way around it: it was ugly, plain and simple.
I understand that in a touring production the sets have to be easy to move, but that doesn't mean they have to be sloppily painted with the least subtle colours imaginable. I also understand there mightn't have been too much money for the costume department to use - but I'm sure they could've come up with something slightly less cheap-looking. The visuals were somewhat distracting for me, it looked like no effort went into them whatsoever.

Altogether, I'm still unsure if dragging myself to a town 200 kilometers away to see an opera, even if it had its good aspects, was worth it.
At least it was interesting to compare the new opera that's done in baroque style to the actual old operas I've seen. Why are the old ones so slowly paced? Is it because, back then, they didn't have any way to listen to their favourite arias outside the opera house, so it was better everything was repeated right away? Or has our attention span become shorter in the couple of centuries that have passed in between the classic operas and the creation of Fitness? Or have I been seeing the most boring classics and traditional opera is actually both fun and exciting?
Or am I just reading too much into this, and the true answer is that everybody's simply not an opera person?

Photos by Jussi Aalto.

Give us our Tanssi back!

It's becoming a personal tradition for me to do something musical on May Day. Last year, I went to ÅST to see Les Mis. This year, it was time for a musical themed May Day concert at Seinäjoen kaupunginteatteri.
The music was played by a combination of two bands, Seinäjoki City Orchestra and Kauhava Big Band, conducted by Timo Ristilä. The singers were all former Vampyyrien tanssi cast members: Jouko Enkelnotko, Jyri Lahtinen, Leena Rousti, Ville Salonen, Sami Vartianen and Anne Vihelä.

Seeing every singer and even the conductor worked at Tanssi, and with the concert being staged at the theatre that used to do the show... It wasn't unrealistic to look forward a small nod or two in the vampire fandom's general direction.
But boy, I had no idea how amazing an experience the concert would actually be!

 Sami Vartiainen and Jyri Lahtinen in a happy May Day mood.

Indeed, everyone had figured the concert would have a couple of treats for vampire fans - t-shirts with the musical's logo and teeth a bit sharper than usual were once more spotted among the crowd at Seinäjoen kaupunginteatteri's foyer.  Some former members of the Tanssi ensemble were present, even.

However, the first act of the concert went by - in retrospect! - quite calmly. We clapped, we screamed, but we hadn't yet a reason to go absolutely insane. Even though they played Tanz der Vampire's Overture and joked a bit with vampire teeth at one point, the music selection was well suited for regular audience members too. They played tunes from West Side Story, A Little Night Music, Chess and more. Everyone sung well, Sami Vartiainen's dancing was impressive during the Singing in the Rain number, the band sounded grand.
So far, so good.

And then we heard Count von Krolock's voice from the speakers, announcing that after intermission we'd be returning to Transylvania...

Jouko Enkelnotko as Herbert von Krolock, once more.

Return we did. The first half of the second act was pure, unadulterated fanservice for the members of the Tanssi fandom present.
Want to hear Jyri Lahtinen sing Krolock's part in Kun kaikki pimenee/Totale Finsternis once more? You got it! How about Kun rakastut/Wenn Liebe in Dir ist - but with Alfred's and Herbert's parts reversed? Why not! Or... ever wanted to see a drunk Count von Krolock? Here you go!
We saw stuff happening onstage that is usually only joked in fangirls and boys' conversations. I didn't imagine laughing this much at any concert!

I've no idea if there were people in the audience who hadn't seen Vampyyrien tanssi or saw it but didn't like it. A couple of senior citizens seated in the front row seemed a bit annoyed at the audience around them, but frankly, I don't care too much if they disapproved of my screaming. For the fans present, the concert was a fantastic - though brief - return to the musical we loved so much. The vampire-based numbers, as well as the rest of the second act with Sweet Transvestite from The Rocky Horror Show and more, were done perfectly tongue-in-cheek.

We rewarded the hilarity with standing ovations at the middle of the show, with screams and applause. I don't think my palms have ever hurt quite as much after leaving a theatre.

Among others, some sweet transvestites...

When the show had ended and I was approaching the front door with my friends, a lady who we had never seen before shouted at us - maybe she spotted my Dance of the Vampires logo t-shirt or something:
"Hey girls! You should start a petition to get Tanssi back!"
I'm sure it'd be useless, but I still kind of feel like doing that - just out of protest. It's been over a month since the last performance, but I'm not yet done with my annoyance over the show's closing. I'm not sad. I'm plain annoyed.

There are people who would've wanted to go but couldn't get tickets. The people who did... It seems almost everyone saw the show at least twice, and I haven't heard of anyone who would've seen it without liking it. The fans certainly still miss the show. The ensemble members I met yesterday told me the cast misses it, too. It was also clear the actors had a good time doing the show, and that made watching it hugely enjoyable.
In short, I've never felt such a strong connection in between members of the audience, in between the cast and the fans, at any show I've ever seen.

I can't but wonder what is wrong with the people who make decisions at Seinäjoen kaupunginteatteri.
How could they let Tanssi die?

Photos by Miss V. - and, for once, taken inside a theatre auditorium with permission!

The Return of the Miserable

Yesterday, it was announced that Tampereen Teatteri will do a production of the musical Les Misérables in 2013. We'll come to that in a minute, but first, a history lesson...

How many of you knew that Tampereen Teatteri did a production of the musical Les Misérables in 1984 - a whole year before the now-26-year-old London production had its premiere?

Yep.

According to a book about the theatre's history, Panu Rajala's Tunteen tulet, taiteen tasot, Tampereen Teatteri was the first theatre outside Paris to do a production of Les Misérables – though in reality, a Croatian theatre called Komedija Theatre had staged the show in 1983 already. Nevertheless, an impressive feat: a production based on the concept version of what later became the world's most popular musical.

Back then, the show wasn't called Les Misérables, but Kurjat, which is the book's Finnish title.

Someone had seen Les Mis's concept version in Paris and fallen in love with it, and the idea was born that it should be imported to Finland. Apparently, it was thought from the start that the piece was be too big for Tampereen Teatteri to do, but they did it anyway, with Rauli Lehtonen directing. He thought it was "a fun piece, with a lot of energy..."

That must be the only time I've seen the concepts of fun and Les Misérables in the same sentence. Wonder if that had anything to do with the production flopping a bit...

First of all, the show had a very mixed reception. Aspects like costumes, sets and the ensemble's ability to sing and move in the same rythm were criticised. The book guesses the criticism was because they didn't have enough time to train the choreography properly. Then again, though, the actors playing Valjean, Marius and Javert (Reijo Lahtinen, Markku Niemelä, Tapani Perttu) got praise for their singing. One critic really liked the barricade scenes, saying the direction worked the best there.

As a whole, some critics said it's new and different musical theatre, but others blamed the source material itself for being unever and unfinished and running through the book's plot too quickly. Maybe that's a problem even with the show as we know it today, trying to shove 1400 pages of events into three hours, but the concept version suffered from that even more strongly: the show begun at At the End of the Day, so you were just supposed to know what had happened beforehand. Iconic songs, like Bring Him Home and On My Own, weren't a part of the piece yet. It was clearly still work in progress.

That doesn't mean it had to flop, though. It was a pretty good show already. The original 85 London Les Mis had a bad reception among the critics, too, but audiences still loved it!

Not in this case. Tampereen Teatteri's 84 Les Mis wasn't as popular as the theatre hoped it would be. It had 44 performances and less than 22 000 watchers in total. Compare that with Helsingin kaupunginteatteri's 99 version and its almost 130 000 watchers, even with ÅST's over 45 000... Not exactly an amazing result.

In 2013, after 29 years, Tampereen Teatteri will stage Les Misérables again. I'm torn between hysterical joy and hysterical panic.

I'm hysterical with joy simply because we're getting Les Mis in Finland again.

It's of course my absolute favourite musical. You couldn't have it any better, being a Mizzie around here. I think we were all prepared to wait for another ten years or so before seeing the show in Finland the next time, but wouldn't you know, we can go back next year already!

But the things I'm worried about... They are so many.

Cast is certainly one thing, but it's maybe the smallest of my worries. In ÅST, every role was cast quite spot on, so I've been spoiled. I try to remember that's rare and not to get my hopes too high! I've also seen performances with a weak Fantine, with a weak Enjolras, a weak Thénardier, even a weak Javert... And I've still enjoyed myself. I of course hope every role will be cast brilliantly, but seeing the only time I've felt bored and annoyed at Les Mis was the time I saw a very bad Valjean... It seems as long as the main role is chosen well, I can live with a miscast or two.

There's of course the matter of how the production will look like, and that makes me a bit more nervous. Seeing that it doesn't usually happen in Finland, I doubt they're copying the original production nor the 25th Anniversary Tour... But something tells me to be slightly afraid of two things.
Firstly, I don't want it to be too similar to the ÅST Les Mis. Even though I loved the production with all my heart, I've seen that take - 13 times. It's time for something different! But that brings me to the other thing: I'm also afraid that they'll go all modern and different just for the sake of being different. I'd love to see a well-done modernization of Les Mis, but it's way too easy to slip into the just doing this to be different category there...

In a nutshell, I don't know what I'd like the production to look like, exactly, but I sincerely hope it surprises me.

My biggest worry, however, is the translation.

I know many people don't even pay attention to translations while seeing musicals. There's pretty singing, the tune tells how the character is feeling already, so who cares if the words they sing are a little clumsy! I doubt many even notice. Personally, however, I'm a bit of a translation freak and always love hearing good Finnish versions.

Sadly, if the libretto won't be revised, I'm not going to enjoy Les Mis in my native language.

The Finnish libretto is by Jukka Virtanen and Kristiina Drews, and while those two have translated a lot of musicals and sometimes even done a good job... Les Mis is hardly a high point in their career. The translation is available for everyone to enjoy as the Finnish subtitles on the Les Misérables 25th Anniversary Concert DVD, and it was also used as subtitles at Åbo Svenska Teater. If just reading it while it hovers onscreen makes me bury my face in my hands with confusion and embarrassment... How will it sound like sung?

I'll give you an example. Remember the scene where Valjean asks Enjolras to "give me the spy Javert, let me take care of him"? Give that bit a round of Virtanen/Drews treatment and translate it back into English, and you have "I will do the spy!" Sure you will, Valjean, sure you will, in various imaginative ways - too bad, though, that this isn't a piece of silly fanfiction but the real musical, written to be taken seriously!

That is of course not the only unintentionally funny or otherwise weak moment of the translation. I seem to recall some bits, like On My Own, were pretty good, but sometimes the tone of the scene and the words sung simply argue with each other. I wonder if a new translation is too much to hope for, but I certainly hope the theatre will at least find someone to go through the existing libretto and fix the most glaring mistakes.

Tampereen Teatteri's Les Misérables, 2013 - now with 100% less spy-doing..?

Source for the 1984 Les Mis part: Panu Rajala - Tunteen tulet, taiteen tasot.
First photo from Rajala's book, second from here.

About a Classic and Some Cast Recordings

Warning: this entry will contain spoilers for the classic Finnish play (and now, a musical) Anna Liisa. They don't want any of us here graduating middle school without knowing what it's about, but seeing most of us slept through those classes... Maybe consider this as a lesson in Finnish literature if this is new to you. 

I've never seen a Finnish original musical before Tampereen Työväen Teatteri's Anna Liisa.
It's silly. I spend half of my time online shrieking about Finnish musical theatre, yet it took me this long to see a show created from start to finish in this country.

It's easy to point out what's kept me away. 
Firstly, I don't like jukebox musicals, and most of the Finnish musicals seem to be that sort. If I wish to listen to hits from the years gone by, I'll listen to Radio Nostalgia. Now give me some original tunes! Secondly, the target group for Finnish original musicals often seems to be people fifty years older than me. Combine this with the first one for especially exciting results: Katri Helena, Matti and Teppo the Musical, The Great Humppa Musical...
The last reason, of course, is good old prejudice. It's done here in Finland, there's no way they can compose anything that compares to stuff from Broadway!

Luckily, Anna Liisa proved at least the third thought wrong. There is no reason why original Finnish musicals couldn't be as enjoyable as imported shows.

Anna Liisa is, originally, a 19th century play by the Finnish writer Minna Canth. It tells a story of a young woman who is getting married while hiding a huge secret: years ago, she gave birth to another man's child - and, in her extreme distress, killed her baby right after it was born.
Not a very cheerful story, but then again, when have musicals ever been? Ever since West Side Story, they've been mostly about death and sorrow already - Anna Liisa is just following the genre's traditions.

This haunting story was combined with, in my opinion, quite nice music by a band called Hehkumo. I think the show's programme says it well: Hehkumo creates unique music. Its roots and foundation are in folk music, but the result is new music that fits the modern day. The music wasn't traditionally musical-ish. I don't think it would fit a show set in a modern period, but it suited the rural 19th century story well.
The tunes were more about setting the tone of the scene and explaining the character's personalities and motives than bringing the events forward. Luckily, unlike for example in Ghost, that seemed like a good decision. While I've only read short snippets of Anna Liisa and can't say for sure, I suspect that most of the dialogue was directly from Canth's play. Trying to convert a monologue about a woman killing her child into a showtune seems like an endeavor that's doomed to fail in nine out of ten cases - I'm glad the music took a different route.
The lyrics of the songs, also a bit old-fashioned but in a positive way, suited the spoken dialogue's style.

The band was onstage, playing the tunes and also taking part in the action sometimes. I liked that, it didn't feel gimmicky. The band seemed like a seamless part of the rest of the cast - a cast that handled their singing parts nicely, by the way.

Acting-wise, I felt to me some moments were done a little too loudly, there seemed to be a little too much shouting and exaggeration at times. Luckily it didn't distract me too much. Judging by the people sitting next to me, sobbing as the events progressed, it didn't ruin others' experience either.
There also was a lot of dancing. I don't know lots about dance styles, but Anna Liisa's choreography felt nice to me. It wasn't distracting, it didn't scream "look at us dance and then the show will proceed". It felt like a integral part of the piece.

The show's visuals were mostly enjoyable. The fir tree sets used as the background greated a lovely feeling of being in a forest. The only thing that truely kept bothering me about the visual side of the show was... This is so nitpicky it's going to sound sad, but I'll say it anyway:
There was a character called Minna Canth onstage. She opened both acts by talking about the way the author saw her own play. I don't know if the show would've been significantly different without her, but she didn't annoy me. Her t-shirt, however, did. Everyone else had a nicely timeless wardrobe, even though some pieces of clothing were based on modern styles it was done in a stylish way... And then there's a character with a bright t-shirt that reads ANNA LIISA on the front. I know I shouldn't let that irritate me, but it broke a bit of the illusion for me.

All in all, however, I'm sad the auditorium was only half-way full. I understand most people my age think this must be the most boring thing ever and simply won't go, and I suppose not everybody can get into the music. But personally, I think Anna Liisa was well worth seeing. Definitely the best Finnish original musical I've seen...
There are only three performances left next month. If you happen to be hanging around Tampere these days, I recommend.

But wait! There's more to this.
The thing I'm the most impressed of here, actually, is Tampereen Työväen Teatteri releasing a CD with Anna Liisa's songs.

I listen to musical albums every day, but until this, Finnish ones have been lacking from my collection. my collection. I know there's been a small handful of Finnish musical cast recordings before, but Anna Liisa is the first one I've encountered - and I've truely enjoyed this rare chance of revisiting the show after returning home.

In Anna Liisa's case, it probably was as easy as it can be to decide about recording an album. It's a new show, so there was no need to negociate with any producers from some foreign country. Still, I can't help hoping they'd record Finnish productions of international musicals, too. I continue being upset that there wasn't a CD of either Åbo Svenska Teater's Les Misérables or the Seinäjoen kaupunginteatteri's Tanz der Vampire.
With about 48 pre-existing Les Mis albums in dozens of languages, I have to admit the former decision isn't impossible to understand. But then there's Tanz. The best Finnish translation I've ever heard; a cast I've preferred to every single Tanz album I've listened to so far; a large, partially international fanbase... I think it would've been worth recording. I also think Svenska Teatern, with their sold-out-until-2013 production of Kristina från Duvemåla, is making a mistake if they don't release a CD.

If even the Swedish have done cast recordings for Les Mis, Phantom of the Opera and so on, I don't see why the Finnish couldn't get at least a small highlights album of some Broadway show done.

Anna Liisa's trailer.

Logo by Anne Sillanaukee and Kari Sunnari, photos by Jyrki Tervo / Tampereen Työväen Teatteri.

Showtunes in the Music House

I visited the new Musiikkitalo, Helsinki Music Centre, for the first time this week. On 27.3.2012, I saw a West End/Broadway concert with Vantaan Viihdeorkesteri playing, Nick Davies conducting and David Shannon and Jacqui Scott singing.

 

Music Centre

The evening's repertory consisted of about twenty very famous musical tunes.
A bit too famous, actually. Surely most of the audience don't listen to musicals every day like me, but I'm certain everyone's heard Memory, Don't Cry for Me Argentina and Music of the Night before. The songs I guess the audience wasn't too acquaintanted with (Till I Hear You Sing, Electricity) were few and far in between. All in all, it's not that I mind hearing songs from popular shows. I just think it'd be lovely to sometimes have a Who Am I? instead of the omnipresent Bring Him Home.
That being said, maybe the solists' history justifies some of these choices. Shannon has played Phantom and Jean Valjean in West End lately and will start a new run as Valjean this spring. Scott has performed parts like the title role in Evita and Grizabella in Cats.  Maybe it'd be weird not to have these characters' big songs in there.
What's more, though - I think some songs, like Circle of Life, were slightly odd choices for just two singers. Maybe actual duets would've worked better?

I've heard big orchestra like this only a couple of times before. Out of those times, this night sounded the best, absolutely. The praise the Music Centre has received for their acoustics isn't all empty. The evening was a treat to the ears.
Actually, if I'm completely honest... I enjoyed the instrumental pieces the most. The orchestra played medleys from Oliver!, A Chorus Line and The Producers, and while I also liked the vocalists, those were my favourite parts. I could've easily sat there for the whole night, just listening to the gorgeous tunes from the orchestra. Too bad musicals can't always be accompanied with as many instruments as here!

As for the singers, I think Scott was more enjoyable to watch but Shannon to listen to.
I sat at the very back of the auditorium, at a dizzying height, so I may not be the best one to judge - but I got the feeling Scott's stage presence was stronger than Shannon's. She seemed to get into the mood of whichever song she was singing a lot easier. That being said, I think her voice was a bit too harsh for some of the songs. She overpowered Shannon a bit during their duets, even though his voice is also reasonably powerful. Then again, some of her numbers sounded amazing. I admired her Memory, and Defying Gravity wasn't bad either. The latter was also one of the most powerful orchestra moments, it made chills run down my spine...
Shannon, then. I think he wasn't exactly in his element with faster, cheerier tunes like Luck Be a Lady, but with the ballads, Till I Hear You Sing, Bring Him Home, Can You Feel the Love Tonight... He truely excelled.

The evening ended with a medley of ABBA songs.
This part felt a little awkward to me. I got the feeling that the soloists, Scott especially, were trying way too hard to get the audience to clap and sing along the music. Did someone forget to tell them they're in Finland..? Seeing it was my first time in the Music Centre, I've no idea how wild the audiences who frequent it are - but singing and dancing along is something I certainly don't expect to do and also don't feel like doing at a concert hall.
Also, I found ABBA's Thank You For the Music a slightly boring choice for the encore. I'd rather heard another musical song, seeing those were the focus of the night.

That all said, I enjoyed myself a lot. The repertoire was mostly overdone, but luckily they made it sound good with nice vocals and a gorgeous-sounding orchestra!

Also, got to add that Shannon was my first Jean Valjean ever. They were signing autographs after the concert and I went to tell him that. He was very nice. So nice I didn't feel too embarrassed, having a huge fangirling attack in front of him...
Photo from Wikipedia.

Violinist

I got a newsletter from Helsingin kaupunginteatteri in my e-mail today.

For those of you who are not so aware of how the Finnish theatre scene works: HKT is one of the biggest theatres in this country and famous for their musicals. They've produced the Finnish premieres of many huge Broadway and West End hits. Cats, Les Misérables, Miss Saigon, Beauty and the Beast, Mary Poppins, Wicked... Some argue these shows are not exactly high art, but people usually agree that they're good entertainment.
Last fall, after the popular production of Wicked, HKT premiered a musical about Katri Helena, a famous Finnish singer whose music is popular among a bit older people. I shrugged that off as the theatre's attempt of attracting more mature audiences after the kid and teenager oriented Mary Poppins and Wicked. Surely they would return to the hit Broadway musical path next season? What would they give us this time? Another Disney musical, maybe The Little Mermaid? Or would it be wishing too much we would finally get a Finnish version of The Phantom of the Opera?
Then I heard some rumours. I couldn't believe my ears. Today, the newsletter confirmed the vague whisperings.

HKT's next musical on their big stage will be Fiddler on the Roof.

 

Don't get me wrong. I'm not saying Fiddler on the Roof is a bad musical. To be honest, I have never seen it, and while I'm not into the music I've heard from it, I haven't heard all the songs either.

Still, I don't think it's too hard to understand why I was shocked to learn the country's biggest musical stage is set to do Fiddler.

Here's a short list of theatres who have done Fiddler during the past few years: 

Latoteatteri Kulissi 2012, Ähtärin musiikkiteatteri 2012, Oulun kaupunginteatteri 2011, Porvoon kesäteatteri 2011, Merunlahden kesäteatteri 2011, Mikkelin teatteri 2010, Lopen teatteri 2009, Hauhon kesäteatteri 2008, Kesäteatteri Tammenranta 2007, Jyväskylän kaupunginteatteri 2007, Ruoveden teatteri 2006, Samppalinnan kesäteatteri 2006, Rovaniemen kaupunginteatteri 2004...

As you can see, Fiddler is a huge favourite of professional and amateur theatres alike all over the country. Ever since it's Finnish premiere in 1966 - in Helsingin kaupunginteatteri, no less! -, there's hardly been a year without the piece playing somewhere in Finland. I've no idea how I've avoided the show this long, Fiddler's been performed so much I'd guess at least 80% of the Finnish population has seen it.

After its Finnish premiere in 1966, Fiddler on the Roof was played for years in Helsingin kaupunginteatteri. With 450 performances and 319 327 watchers, it remains the most popular theatre production in Finland to this day.

In other words, HKT's reviving the most popular, the most overdone, the most everybody-and-their-mother-has-seen-and-also-acted-in-this-one piece of musical theatre in the history of Finnish theatre.

What happened to the theatre that used to produce popular, current musical theatre from Broadway and West End? Huge successes never seen in Finland before? Back in 1966, that used to be the case: Fiddler premiered here just two years after Broadway... HKT can boast about hosting the Finnish premieres of countless hit musicals. Was Wicked the last one of that sort? Are we to enjoy jukebox musicals about Finnish singers and revivals from times gone by from now on? And if they absolutely had to revive something that's already been seen in Finland... How about something every single amateur theatre hasn't done already?

A couple of weeks ago there was discussion in the newspapers how HKT is handling their money oddly: keeping millions' worth of funding from the city of Helsinki sitting in their bank account. With that money, I'm sure they could afford something a little more interesting, a little more courageous than the safest choice available.

Luckily some other theatres in Finland will have a bit more exciting 2012-2013 season. I don't think I'll be bringing my money to HKT to enjoy this trip down the nostalgia lane.

Picture by Charlotte Estman-Wennström.

It's Gonna Be Good?

A couple of days ago, I found out something that was released a month ago but that my stalker senses failed to reveal until this week.

Next to Normal
Premiere in Wasa Teater, 22.9.2012, performed in Swedish.
Cast:
Anna-Maria Hallgarn: Diana
Sören Lillkung: Dan
Mikaela Tidermark: Natalie
Johan Aspelin: Doctor Fine/Doctor Madden
Markus Lytts: Gabe
Samuel Harjanne: Henry
The last three with a little caution - I haven't found any confirmation about their roles. These seem like the best matches, right?

Well, I knew Next to Normal was going to premiere in Wasa Teater. I knew, even, that Mikaela Tidermark was going to play Natalie. But, for some reason, me or my equally musical-obsessed friends never managed to find any info about the rest of the cast until just now...
Seeing this cast is 50% composed of ÅST Les Misérables alumni, I'm so there in the premiere. But let's take a closer look. I won't comment on Hallgarn, Aspelin or Lytts here; I haven't seen them in anything, so I can't really make any assumptions. But I will talk a little about my feelings considering the ex-ÅST cast members...

Sören Lillkung as Dan
I'm going to be honest with you. My first thought was "what the hell."
It's probably no surprise to anyone that after Les Mis, I'm for Sören Lillkung in pretty much everything. He was an amazing Javert, vocally the most amazing I could ever wish for. Such a deep, operatic, beautiful voice. Just like every Javert should have, in an ideal world... Of course I'm glad I'll get to see him in some other show!
But then, let's think about J. Robert Spencer from Next to Normal's original Broadway cast album. This is where my initial thought comes from: Spencer's voice is pretty much as far from Lillkung's as you can get. Much lighter, gentler, very very different. Also, if I think about Helsingin kaupunginteatteri's Next with Juha Junttu in the role - pretty close to Spencer's style.
So, I've no idea how Lillkung will handle this, vocally. He'll be very different from what I've used to. Note that when I say different I don't necessarily mean worse, not at all. How could I know! It's just that I'm finding it impossible, trying to imagine what he'll be like. Especially considering Dan's are some of my favourite songs of the whole show, I know every single note from the Broadway version by heart... Wonder what comes of this.
Actually, Dan is my favourite character in the show, too. I know, it seems easy to jump into the conclusion that because my favourite Javert is going to play him he's of course my new favourite - but no. He's been my favourite ever since I saw the show for the first time. You can't help feeling for him. He does the best he can, supporting his family, but the situation keeps getting out of hand, leaving him powerless. He's just a human, one that makes mistakes, as we do. You can't always agree with the things he does, but you understand where his decisions are coming from. I love how his character develops. I'm excited to see what Lillkung does with the role!

Mikaela Tidermark as Natalie
This I've known for quite some time, and I've been happy about it ever since. Even if rest of the production would've been cast with complete unknowns, I'd still gone to see it, for this bit of casting alone.
That's of course because Tidermark was, hands down, the best Cosette I have ever seen. It's a short role that very easy to make very boring. Luckily Tidermark did the best job possible, showing as much character as you can during those few moments. No wonder Marius was in love with the girl, she was so adorable! Also, I really like her voice, I'm sure she'll make Natalie's songs sound good too.
Character-wise, I find Natalie way less interesting than her parents. She's the goodie-two-shoes daughter who starts to rebel, not a very uncommon or an especially intriguing story. My uninterest, though, might be largely about the version I've seen and how Natalie was portrayed there, not the character herself. I'm sure a lot can be done with her, that she can actually be made more interesting. Remembering what I said about Tidermark's Cosette... I have high hopes.

Samuel Harjanne as Henry
Harjanne is my favourite Enjolras in one respect: I think his voice suited the character perfectly, he's one of the best Enjolrati I've ever heard. Acting-wise, well, there were a couple of things... But maybe ranting about Enjolras's character is better left for another time. Especially considering I've seen Harjanne more than the other ÅST alumni here: I also saw him in Striking 12, Spring Awakening and even in that bit part in Legally Blonde. I guess I have to admit I'm a bit of a fan. As one of my friends keeps saying - he's a talented fellow!
So, as if this casting wasn't good enough already, this just makes it a little more perfect! Henry is of course not a very developed character, but he can be quite fun and cute, as Petrus Kähkönen proved in Helsingin kaupunginteatteri. I'm sure Harjanne will be just as good. He'll sound amazing at the very least!

When it comes to the piece in general, Next to Normal is actually one of the best musicals I have ever seen. It's simple - Next has got everything a good musical should have. A really strong story with strong characters, accompanied by strong, original music. Especially remembering the countless jukebox musicals being made everywhere these days... It's really refreshing to see something like Next, a brilliant original musical just a couple of years old.
I liked the 2010-2011 Helsingin kaupunginteatteri version okay, but seeing the show three times was maybe more about loving the source material, not the production itself. Well, most of the actors varied from good to great, anything with my long-time fangirl crush Tuukka Leppänen can't exactly fail in my eyes... But something about the direction distanced me from the events. Maybe it was the staging, which I found simply ugly.
So, I can't wait to see what this production, with Victoria Brattström directing, will be like.

Maybe it'll be an interesting fall, musical-wise, even if a couple of old favourites happen to close this spring!

And hey! If you feel that this is not the version for you to see (if you don't know the story and aren't skilled at Swedish, it might be hard to follow along)... Tampereen Työväen Teatteri will also do Next to Normal next fall, with Eriikka Väliahde, Puntti Valtonen and others in the roles. 
With this, and two productions of Hair popping up in Finland at the same time, greetings to theatres: try to spy each other a little more carefully!