Review: Kimalluksen kaupunki
Fast-paced adventures straight to the city of Glitter
Theatre performances for the whole family are always received with joy. The story, based on a book by British author Philip Ridley, has resulted in a very attractive and sparkling performance at the Helsinki City Theatre. The City of Glitter is a modern fairy tale. This is already the case with regard to the original text published twenty years ago, but especially thanks to Helka-Maria Kinnunen’s excellent dramatisation, which seems to combine both old “Dickensian”, dark elements and the present day and timelessness. The viewer meets strange or strangely familiar characters under bridges or in the royal floors, types with their own rules of the game. The actions are regulated by the fact that you have to please the king or else you will have a black eye.
The play is an adventure that inspires the child audience to think and take a stand on their own, which is made possible by both Kari Rentola’s direction on the right wavelengths and excellent visualisation.
At the “departure station” in their own small home are Kasper and his mother Pumppu. The boy takes care of the roses and serves and pampers his mother so that she doesn’t lose her sparkle. When Pumppu stays beautiful and content, and gets his favorite cake at regular intervals, Kasper is fine too. Or at least on the surface, because I guess it’s pretty boring now when you don’t have friends next door and you can’t go any further. But then the Charmer pops up from somewhere, who immediately becomes a friend and tells Kasper the way to the nearby towns of Damnation and Glitter. Behind is the Pump, and replaced by the Charmer and the other Argonauts (Argonaut is a loanword from Greek mythology). This group of heroes will find that they will survive as best they can under the King of Streets. The king is the bad guy, and all is not well in the kingdom anyway. Fear, anger and tantrums are common, and one’s own interests take precedence over the interests of a friend. Kasper has to think about right and wrong, learn and revise his perceptions. People flee, chase, dare to take the side of the weaker. – Here is a “computer game” live.
Jari Pehkonen gives up his role as a selfish and evil king. He overshoots so much in his “yök-reviews” – what and who he doesn’t like – that it’s more amusing than scary. The king’s entire court, with its own peculiarities, is interesting and fresh in its expression. Many of the team members have done a lot of children’s theatre in their careers, and it shows in the very natural immersion in Ridley’s story.
An adult viewer can see surreal features in the characters, narrative and stage design, bordering on the real and the superreal, while a child is fascinated by the contradictions in the behaviour or clothing of the adult characters and the surprising nature of the plot. Even big people can be afraid of the dark, moths, bullying or fighting. Some even get upset when a varnished nail breaks or they have to give up the “charm whirl”.
Jouko Klemettilä is the whimsical Poodle, Leena Rapola is the frightened but carefree servant of the king, Into, and in the role of the Clicker, Marjut Toivanen speaks to the whole nation about wise art and inept philistines.
Aino Seppo equips the beautiful Pump with obstacle and cosmetics. She is a mother figure who loves banoffi pie (banana, toffee and whipping cream) and her son, enchanted by her own sparkle. The story’s storyteller has written a growth story for both him and Kasperi. Hannes Suominen is an appealing and brisk, clearly replicating Kasper.
The 9-year-old Konsta, who was sitting next to him, turned out to be Hurmuri/Iikka Forss. “When he was happy and funny, he called everyone “guys” and was so proud of his hair.” There were plenty of questions about the Argonauts and their accessories, not least the helmet models, and the huge dog stick dolls impressed both Konsta and the audience in general. Joona’s favorite was a bald woman (brave maiden Tuutilulla/Sanna-June Hyde). “That was great!” Jonah also admired the king’s “clothes made of coffee packets” and was nervous along with the others whether the mother who had been robbed and imprisoned in a large clock could be saved or not. He – more than Kaspera – didn’t really like the fact that Pumppu also started calling his son’s new friends gold. “A bit sad like that,” thought Joona.
If you ask what really makes the city sparkle, the proposal answers, among other things: Caring for each other. Compromising on selfishness. And protecting nature.
Kaarina Naski