Review: Siiri ja kamala possu

Wonderfully horrible pig

Helsinki City Theatre’s Siiri and the Horrible Pig is an inventive play that respects children. The play, which is steadily directed by Taina Mäki-Iso, tells the story of friendship, tolerance and the stumbling blocks of a child’s life.

Siiri’s (Elina Reinikka) plush toy The bunny has a hole in it, through which cotton wool is gushing out. The bunny is Siiri’s sleeping buddy and the most important toy. However, the girl’s friend little Otto (Matti Laine) has plenty of suggestions for improvement. So Bunny is transported to a shoemaker, a dentist and finally to a teddy bear hospital. However, instead of Bunny, Piggy comes home from the hospital, who is absolutely horrible. With long teeth, Siiri gives the homeless pig permission to stay for one night, even though it soon becomes clear that the pig messes up absolutely everything.

Based on the book Siiri ja horala pigsu by Tiina Nopola and Mervi Lindman, the performance is a crazy play on childhood. Even though the story of the play is not one-to-one with the book, it still conveys the warm playfulness familiar from Nopola’s texts.

The child audience identifies with Siiri and empathizes with every moment. Adult viewers will be delighted by Reinikka’s meticulous child-like movements, including fits of rage. In addition to little Otto, Matti Laine also gets to play a mother, a shoemaker, a dentist, a doctor and the horrible Pig. Especially in the roles of the dentist and the horrible Pig, Laine does a great job.

Heini Granberg’s set design and costumes also play a major role. The Foyer of the Small Stage will be transformed into a children’s room, a dentist and a teddy bear hospital in the blink of an eye. The inventiveness of the set design continues all the way to the piggy costume. Sometimes it seems that horrible pigs are hiding in every corner.