Review: 100 tapaa nauraa

Exhilarating laughter energy

Now I’m not quite sure if there were a hundred, but quite a few anyway. Namely, the habits and styles of laughter and carry laughter in the body and movement. And best of all, none of them were mean or malicious, not even mocking or ironic. Not even when the laughter was directed at the other person.
And even though I know that everything was rehearsed in Jyrki Karttunen’s work 100 Ways to Laugh for the Helsinki Dance Company, and many of the laughs were done technically, the whole performance was still unforced and joyfully catchy. It didn’t just bring a smile to the corners of my mouth, but also a hearty laugh, giggles and giggles in the audience.

I don’t know if that was the original idea when planning the performance, but I’m ready to say that Karttunen and her dancers have created the best therapy method of the autumn to tame the beginning of the polar night. With the laughter energy of the performance and the sympathetically funny gestures and facial expressions, it is guaranteed to last quite a few dark, cold and wet autumn mornings.

Karttunen has used various soft figures in his works before. Now there are a slew of endearingly clumsy yellow-and-black creatures that remind me of both aliens and the familiar smiley face. However, the clumsiness is only apparent, at least in the circus-like scenes.

All-round joy

As the name suggests, the starting point for the performance 100 Ways to Laugh has been laughter, laughter and ridiculousness. Good-natured laughter bubbled throughout the performance in facial expressions, mutual contacts and movement. The versatile dance, of which there is a lot, flows lightly and smoothly. I enjoy the softly swinging jazzy parts the most in the trio of Eero Vesterinen, Valtteri Raekallio and Mikko Paloniemi , among others. And how the laughter moves around the body, interpreted by Kai Lähdesmäki or Jenni-Elina Lehto , for example.

Various laughs can also be heard in the music, both in Tuomas Fränti’s compositions and in his arrangements. The dancers’ chorus of laughter is quite smiling, and you can also dance to the rhythm of laughter in a more serious way, like Terhi Vaimala in her solo.

Audience outreach is also an essential part of the concept of the work. In each performance of the autumn, one scene will be performed by a group that has made its own interpretation of laughter in a three-part workshop led by Karttunen. The premiere was performed by the colourful group The Funky Foot Clan, a group of young dance enthusiasts. In future screenings, the performances will always be different, as the groups selected on the basis of applications are of different ages and backgrounds.

Karttunen’s 100 Ways to Laugh , who will start as HDC’s Artistic Director at the beginning of next year, is a successful starting point for cooperation with the group. In the autumnal yellow and warm light of the show’s giant chandelier, it is nice to enjoy a hefty dose of good-doing movement laughter therapy.