Review: Mörköooppera

The Groke Opera captivates adults and children alike

Helsinki City Theatre’s Groke Opera draws the viewer into the fairytale world with the wings of the tunes and lyrics of Marjatta Pokela, who is known and awarded for her children’s songs.

Marjatta Pokela’s best-known children’s songs are Mörrimöykky and Vaarilla on saari. The musical fairy tale The Groke Opera, completed in 1980, has already captivated representatives of several generations. Kimmo Virtanen’s direction for the small stage of the Helsinki City Theatre brings to the stage a captivating group of performers, whose star, Sanna Majuri’s The Groke, lends itself to both a curious toddler and a mega-scale world star in the song Groke se lähti piiriin.

The plot of the Groke Opera is built on the adventures of the Mölliäs, a Mörö who embarks on a journey into the world of humans. The Groke first arrives in Oulu, but leaves there with a wolf harnessed by it towards Helsinki. When he arrives at Ring Road 3, he has to continue without a wolf, as the sign of the police supervising traffic reads: wolf border.
The Groke and the Bugs speak a language that humans do not understand. My six-year-old companion Anton thought that Mörö’s language was the most fascinating part of the performance. Anton couldn’t define the funniest or most memorable part, because “Everything was just as nice.” In particular, the revolving stage and the rising and descending platform of the stage, which, for example, sucked a melting snowman underground, aroused special joy.

The play is recommended for children over the age of four, but such a young audience may sometimes be frightened by the performance. My six-year-old companion brought her cuddly panda to the performance, which she held tightly in her arms throughout the performance. Panda was reportedly a little scared by Mörö’s roar at times.

The plot does not contain any great teachings or life wisdom, which is also noticed by my companion.

The City Theatre’s Groke Opera is skilfully crafted children’s theatre that also entertains adults.