Exciting new works and modern classics at the Finnish National Opera 2015–2016
In the 2015–2016 season, the Finnish National Opera will present eight opera and ballet premieres with a strong contemporary theme, two of them world premieres of Finnish works. All of the productions premiered feature works created within the last 100 years, except for The Magic Flute. Directors and choreographers with a strong personal touch will also be showcased, including distinguished names such as Peter Stein, Dmitri Bertman, Carolyn Carlson and Nacho Duato. The season opens with a flourish with the premiere of a new production of the world’s most successful musical, The Phantom of the Opera.
A hit musical and a new opera
The opera season will begin on 4 September with the world’s most successful musical, The Phantom of the Opera by Andrew Lloyd Webber, performed for the first time in Finland. While most productions of this musical around the world have been replicas of the original, the Finnish National Opera has been given the rare privilege of creating a completely new production, directed by Tiina Puumalainen. Group bookings were taken from last spring, and individual tickets went on sale in November. The performances for the autumn are sold out.
The other opera premiere in the autumn is The Nose, an uproarious and farcical opera from the early career of Dmitri Shostakovich. The production is directed by Peter Stein, one of Europe’s most highly appreciated stage directors. Based on a short story by Nikolai Gogol, the opera follows a civil servant named Kovalyov as he chases his dismembered nose around St Petersburg. This satirical depiction of the Russian bureaucracy of its era and the strange characters found therein is set to edgy, modernist music. Accordingly, the staging draws on the visual style of 1920s Russian modernism. The production comes from the Zurich Opera and will be performed from 20 November.
The year 2016 will begin with the world premiere of a metallic new opera, Indigo, on 22 January. Librettist Sami Parkkinen spins an exciting tale about the power of an omnipresent mega-corporation, about the perils of technology and about the search for happiness. The music is by Perttu Kivilaakso and Eicca Toppinen from the Finnish heavy metal cello ensemble Apocalyptica, and the director is Vilppu Kiljunen. Something quite extraordinary is in store.
The Magic Flute by W.A. Mozart is an old friend, but this new production will leverage new technology, combining live singers with a fantastic animation created by a British theatre company in 1927. The traditional dialogue is replaced with text cards in silent-film style for a faster-paced action. The production was created at the Komische Oper in Berlin and has won awards. It is also perhaps the most fun production ever of The Magic Flute.
Moscow-based director Dmitri Bertman has won several prizes for his innovative opera productions. His work will be seen in Finland for the first time as he directs the opera The Rake’s Progress by Igor Stravinsky. It is the story of Tom Rakewell and the mysterious Nick Shadow who leads him on a journey of pleasure and ruin. Stravinsky’s 1950s emulation of the world of 18th-century opera resulted in lovely music. The production will be premiered on 18 March, and the role of Tom Rakewell will be performed by the recently widely acclaimed Finnish tenor Tuomas Katajala.
Returning to the repertoire in the autumn are the comic opera Don Pasquale and Tosca, which a favourite since 1995. The visually impressive Thaïs will also return, with Helena Juntunen in the title role. Spring 2016 will conclude with Wagner’s Tristan und Isolde, with a new Finnish cast: Johanna Rusanen-Kartano as Isolde and Jyrki Anttila and Robert Dean Smith as Tristan.
Every year, the FNO invites free opera and ballet companies to perform in Almi Hall. Baroque opera will be featured in September and October as the Finnish Chamber Opera and the Helsinki Baroque Orchestra perform the opera L’incoronazione di Poppea by Claudio Monteverdi. The director is Vilppu Kiljunen, and the conductor is Aapo Häkkinen.
New ballet for the whole family
In the 2015–2016 season, the Finnish National Ballet is offering no fewer than three productions suitable for the whole family. Popular fairy tale ballets dominate the autumn, while the spring is given over to several interesting international choreographers.
The first ballet premiere of the autumn is The Little Mermaid, choreographed by Kenneth Greve as a blend of the eponymous tale by H.C. Andersen and biographical elements from the author’s life. The merger of reality and the fantastic underwater world promises to be visually stunning while telling a moving tale of the longing for love. Composer Tuomas Kantelinen and costume designer Erika Turunen were previously involved in the hugely popular The Snow Queen. The new ballet will be given its world premiere on 23 October.
The spring season will open with two legends and two rising stars in a quadruple bill entitled Masters of Movement that will be premiered on 19 February. Jorma Uotinen and his mentor Carolyn Carlson will bring their well-known works Jord and If to Leave Is to Remember, respectively, to the stage. The programme will also include works by two acclaimed young choreographers: the ecstatically energetic and explosive Episode 31 by Alexander Ekman and Little Monsters by Demos Volp to music by Elvis Presley.
Spanish choreographer Nacho Duato is one of the biggest names in the field today. He will be bringing his award-winning work BACH, Forms of Silence and Emptiness to the FNB. This two-part work was inspired by and features Bach, his life and work. The key characters are the composer himself, a Woman, and Death. The work encompasses all of human life, broad humour as well as moments of melancholy. The production will be premiered by the FNB on 4 May.
Two family favourites will return to the repertoire: Beauty and the Beast by Javier Torres and the Christmas classic, The Nutcracker and the Mouse King. Also returning is Onegin, one of the most beautiful ballets of the 20th century, set by John Cranko to music by Peter Tchaikovsky. Returning in the spring is La Bayadère, one of the great ballet classics.
Concerts and free events
The FNO’s coming season will include several concerts. The Orchestra and Chorus of the FNO will be performing Benjamin Britten’s great War Requiem at the Helsinki Festival, a work rarely performed in Finland. The performance will include the Cantores Minores boys’ choir and soloists Claire Rutter, Jeremy Ovenden and Stephen Gadd.
As always, the FNO will have a variety of events where admission is free, such as the Opera Tea Dances for senior citizens, the Art Breaks for Babies and the Winter Dance in the courtyard. Schoolchildren around Finland will be performing a school opera entitled Jannen salaisuus (Janne’s Secret), composed by Olli Kortekangas to a text by Minna Lindgren about the childhood of Jean Sibelius.
Finnish National Opera / Communications Department
Communications Manager Heidi Almi 358 9 4030 2321
Researcher Juhani Koivisto 358 9 4030 2215
Communications Specialist Heli Rislakki 358 9 4030 2320
Communications Specialist Jussi Iltanen 358 9 4030 2223
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The Finnish National Opera is an international-calibre opera and ballet company with a broad and varied repertoire. As a national arts institution, it serves the entire country: the FNO is the only professional opera company in Finland, and the Finnish National Ballet is the only professional ballet company.
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