Review: Kuninkaan puhe

Hy-y-y-vä Rundis!

Have you seen the Oscar-winning film The King’s Speech and been moved by Colin Firth’s performance? If you haven’t, that’s okay, you should see this play. Oh – you are, and you liked it very much. Okay, you’ll probably like this one too.

The play about Bertie (George VI), the father of the current Queen of England, raises many questions. Can a speech impaired person be a charismatic leader? Can you learn to get rid of stuttering? Can a person who has had to endure bullying believe in themselves? Is the life of royalty dignified? Can genuine friendship exist between completely different people?

Carl-Kristian Rundman, who plays the lead role, had to learn stuttering for the role, and he learned it well. The play does not offer close-ups like the film, but the charisma of “Rundis” shines from a distance. Vuokko Hovatta is the charming Elisabet and Pertti Sveholm is the warm-hearted speech therapist Lionel Logue.

The large stage has been used nicely under Kari Heiskanen’s direction: the small size of the individual is emphasized by a large throne and scenes that make use of empty space. The development of the friendship between Rundis and Sveholm has been brought to the front of the stage, and the rhythm of the duo plays deliciously. Not even swear words taste like bush humor in this exchange.

The story is familiar, but it doesn’t bother me. I don’t get interested for a moment, and when the famous speech on Christmas Day 1939 finally comes from the microphone, I absorb every pathetic word and rejoice in every clearly spoken sentence. He can talk. He is a leader.

I wipe the corner of my eye with a tissue.