Review: Bladis pojkan

One winter’s day, the boy Jakob discovers that someone has stolen his hair snares. It is easy to follow the ski tracks in the snow. The trails lead to the notorious Bladis Hannes farm.

Even though Hannes is said to have killed a man, Jakob enters and, albeit in a squeaky and frightened voice, scolds Hannes. The scolding bites Hannes and six months later he replaces the hare – with a whole moose.

An Ostrobothnian Clintan

A fascination for Bladis Hannes is awakened in young Jakob and an acquaintance develops.

Jakob hangs on to Hannes, who teaches him how to shoot. “He’s that age now,” says Hannes – albeit in a rich accent – when Jakob’s mother protests.

Hannes Blad has a personality that is something of a combination of an Ostrobothnian Clintan and a Robin Hood.

Already with that comment, you begin to understand that there is some kind of bond between Hannes and Jakob.

Hannes Blad has a personality that is something of a combination of an Ostrobothnian Clintan and a Robin Hood.

He is calm and steady and in a somewhat backward way, and contrary to his reputation, he also exudes security. He has his own strong morals, and will do justice with a rifle in his hand if he thinks it is necessary.

Sometimes Hannes makes a mess or steals just for his own gain, but sometimes he gives back with a bang.

A narrative performance

Story is woven together with story, it is intense and sometimes rich when Erik Kiviniemi performs the monologue.

He has written it in a couple of weeks, having carried the stories about “Bladis pojkan” since childhood.

Much is true, even the worst. With the boy Jakob’s moral dilemmas about what happens, the story is given a framework.

With its richness, not least in the interpretations of the roles, the story has a sense of fairy tales and sometimes even suspense. And those elements should be good stories.

And it is pure pleasure for the audience to receive what the confident, experienced actor Kiviniemi offers us. We are sucked into the story, where the drive forward is always present.

It’s snorting and marrow and we get to meet a motley collection. The boy Jakob tries to orient himself and understand the actions of the adults in a mostly male environment.

Colourful gallery of characters

We meet Jacob’s father, who “has his nerves” and speaks indistinctly with a handkerchief in front of his mouth.

We meet the big farmer with a wide jaw and a great deal of self-righteousness. And Bisin who likes to whip people and Löfdahl, who flutters his lips with stinginess when Bladis Hannes offers him a drink.

The voice, facial expressions and body language signal who it is we are observing, as does a leather coat, a headscarf or a hand-rolled tobacco stump.

We meet Bisin who likes to whip people and Löfdahl, who flutters his lips with stinginess when Bladis Hannes offers him a drink.

And then there are the women, the mother and the grandmother. They are stable. “Quick in the woods” and rap in the mouth. And then the mother has soft hands that caress Jakob’s cheeks.

Are we then evil or good? What is right and what is wrong? What does heredity and environment lead to? And can God help?

The question is brought to a head during the funeral at the end of the performance. There are some who sniff, but also those who are happy. Which side should I be on? asks the boy Jakob.

Golden Age gang reunion

Directed by Ann-Luise Bertell, “Bladis pojkan” is a very physical monologue. It is gripping and exciting and a little humorous.

Kiviniemi draws the audience in with his gaze, he kind of tunes in with us, speaks directly to each of us.

The performance is complete with Håkan Omar’s beautiful guitar loops, which weave the threads around the story together and make it beautiful.

Are we then evil or good? What is right and what is wrong? And can God help?

The set design by Anders Karls (who also made the set design for “Gambämark”) consists of some stylized, sparse and sprawling walls or planks.

It doesn’t steal any attention, it works more like a shelter that provides natural pauses in the story.

A story from all ages

I have been quite fed up with Ostrobothnian historical retrospectives. But I immediately forget that this is a story that belongs in the first half of the 20th century, Erik Kiviniemi begins to tell.

This is a story that needs no time frame. It is universal and it lasts for all ages.

There is only one aberration. You should understand dialect. If you do, you will be struck by how rich the language was in the past. As an example, the variety of slurs was almost endless.

There is only one aberration. You should understand dialect.

Pleasurable pleasure

This collaboration between Kiviniemi, Bertell and Omars shuffles the cards from Wasa Theatre’s golden age, when plays such as Colorado Avenue broke audience records.

When Erik Kiviniemi takes the turns on stage, I think he enjoys it very much. Probably even a little more than the audience.

At that time, Kiviniemi was the theatre manager, while Omars and Bertell were on stage. Now the roles are reversed. I think it has been a pleasurable reunion.

And when Erik Kiviniemi now takes the turns on stage, I think he enjoys it very much. Probably even a little more than the audience.