In this issue:

A Cultural Exports Division established in the Ministry of Education
Punahukka nominee for the Nordic Drama Award
Premieres of Finnish plays abroad
Spin – the Musical getting exported

Punahukka of Kari Hotakainen Finland’s nominee for Nordic Drama Award

Every second year the Nordic Drama Award is given to the best Nordic play of the past two years. By the end of April, an inter-Nordic jury decides upon the winner based upon recommendations of all Nordic countries. The Nordic Drama Award is presented during the Nordic Theatre Days, this year in Copenhagen, Denmark, from 28^th July to 4^th August.

Finland’s nominee for the Award is Kari Hotakainen’s Punahukka. Kari Hotakainen started out as a poet and children's author before publishing several award-winning novels, e.g. The Trench Road, which won the prestigious Finlandia Prize in 2003. His most recent play Punahukka (the literal meaning of ‘punahukka’ is a disease which is called SLE, Lupus) which was first premiered at the Kom Theatre in spring 2005, is an extremely funny comedy, despite its serious themes of mercy, faith and lack of faith.

Premieres of Finnish plays abroad

The world premiere of Den Stora Apan  (The Big Ape) was in 20^th January at the Stockholm City Theatre, Sweden. The Big Ape is originally a radio play by Laura Ruohonen and Sara Heinämaa and it has never been performed on professional stage in Finland. The Big Ape has been translated into English, French, Swedish and Norwegian.

Theatre Svandovo in Prague will produce the third foreign premiere of A Mobile Horror by Juha Jokela in April. Since 2002 the play has been a huge success in Finland. A Mobile Horror is translated in English, German, French and Swedish. In February 2006 a new play by Jokela Fundamentalisti  (A Fundamentalist) will have its world premiere in Helsinki.

Viimeinen sikari (The Last Cigar), a comedy by a Finnish playwright Bengt Ahlfors has premieres in two Slovakian theatres in February. Posledná cigara will be played at Slovakian National Theatre in Bratislava, and at the Prešov City Theatre. The Last Cigar will also be played in Prague, Czech Republic, in 2007. Viimeinen sikari had its opening night in 2004 at Helsinki City Theatre and it has been sold out ever since.

The plays of Bengt Ahlfors have been translated in various languages and they have been performed on several theatres around the world. In Slovakian National Theatre Aska och Akvavit (Ashes and Aquavit) by Ahlfors has been in the programme already seven years.

Spin – The Musical the first Finnish musical concept in export

Svenska Teatern i Helsingfors (The Swedish Theatre in Helsinki) has signed the first preliminary contract in exporting Spin – The Musical. The premiere of Spin will be in June 2007 in Yaroslavl, Russia. It is the first time a Finnish musical concept is being exported. Spin – The Musical is a whole concept including the rights, the text, the music, the direction and the choreography. Douglas S. Pashley is the author and composer of the musical.

The theme of Spin handles power relationships between modern media and music industry. Since November 2005 several directors and producers from abroad have visited Svenska Teatern and become acquainted with the musical.

A Promotion Event of Finnish Plays in St. Petersburg Nov 29^th 2005 a success

Finnish Theatre Information Centre organized a promotion event together with Finnish Institute in St. Petersburg,  regional branch of St. Petersburg of the Union of Theatre Workers of Russia and  Interstudio - Academy of Theatrical Arts. The objective of the event was to raise interest in Finnish theatre and drama among theatre professionals in St. Petersburg.

Readings of two plays recently translated into Russian were performed during the event: Maria Jotuni’s Kultainen vasikka (The Golden Calf) and Pirkko Saisio’s Tunnottomuus (Insensibility). Songs from a new Finnish musical Leyla and Daniel by Pasi Toivanen and Petri Kaivanto were also included in the programme. Finnish directors and playwrights presented Finnish theatre to their Russian colleagues and discussed about possibilities of future cooperation.