Review: Niin kuin taivaassa
As in Heaven – on the theatre’s stage and in the auditorium
Helsinki City Theatre’s performance As in Heaven is of guaranteed Jakob Höglund quality.
The first day of the Book Fair, Thursday 28 October, was followed by a theatre performance. I had booked accommodation near the Helsinki City Theatre, so getting there before and after the theatre was easy on foot.
Attracted by Höglund
I wanted to see the Helsinki City Theatre’s musical As It Is in Heaven. I have seen the film years ago, but the biggest attraction was the director and choreographer of the performance, Jakob Höglund, whose works I have seen before, at the Kalevala Åbo Svenska Teater and Cabaret at the Turku City Theatre. I’ve confessed to being a fan of her, that’s how wonderful those theatrical experiences have been.
Jakob Höglund has received recognition for his work not only from viewers, but also from the Swedish Cultural Foundation in Finland. He received the Foundation’s Grand Cultural Award in 2020. In the justification, he is described as a creator who “crosses boundaries not between styles and art forms and challenges traditional theatre art.”
From film to musical
The film Så som i himmelen (Så som i himmelen) was directed by Swedish director Kay Pollak (b. 1938) in 2004. The script for it was written by Carin Pollak together with Anders Nyberg and Ola Olsson . The music was composed by Sweden’s best-known Eurovision composer Fredrik Kempe. The lyrics of the songs are by Carin Pollak and Fredrik Kempen. The film was an international success and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 2005.
The premiere of Så som i himmelen was at the Oscar Theatre in Stockholm in 2018. The script was written by Kay and Carin Polla and also featured Edward af Sillén, composed by Fredrik Kempe, lyrics by Carin Pollak and Fredrik Kempe, and directed by Markus Virta.
The script for the City Theatre has been translated into Finnish by Aino Piilola and the songs by Maija Vilkkumaa.
From the big world to the home region
The theatre’s programme performance describes the plot as follows: “The musical tells the story of the return of the successful conductor Daniel Daréus to his childhood homeland in a small village in northern Sweden. The top musician, who has suffered from health problems, would like to live a quiet life, but soon finds himself conducting the villagers’ church choir, and in the middle of a colorful and vibrant community. Among the diverse country choir, there are not only friends, but also old wounds and, finally, true love.”
Jakob Höglund, who grew up in Jakobstad, has experience of church choirs, in which he says he has found a sense of community and joy, just like the people of Ljusåker in the play. He says that directing this musical has been his big dream ever since he saw it at the Oscar Theatre in Stockholm. Or rather, obsession.
Seeing the musical also made her think about her own future and the right place for her: abroad or at home? Her reflections led her to Finland and the Helsinki City Theatre after ten years abroad. He is now also the artistic director of Lilla Teatern.
One hundred ways to use poles and boxes
The set design on the big stage is minimalist but impressive. It consists mostly of black columns and white boxes, which can be quickly and impressively transformed into different spaces from the forest to the church hall. The set designer is Sven Haraldsson, with whom the director has collaborated before, for example in the Cabaret performance in Turku.
Simple elements are combined with Jakob Höglund’s technique, in which “actors and objects together form the set, and continuous movement and changing bodies create new realities.”
Lights, video effects and shadow theatre add extra power. Samu-Jussi Koski is responsible for the costumes.
The musical – the result of the work of a large group
Going to a theatre musical is by no means cheap. A small wrinkle may appear on your forehead when you look at the theatre’s price list. The ticket prices for the musical As It Are in Heaven on the stalls are already close to ninety (88 €/ 83 € (balcony) / 22 € (front seats: partial visual impairment). For a couple, it makes almost 200 euros for a one-night cultural enjoyment if you buy the program and enjoy a pastry coffee during the intermission.
You can be more understanding of the price when you look at the list of names of those who participated in the performance in the script. It is great from the very beginning of the story – from the scriptwriters to the composers, the lyricists and Finnish translations of the songs, as well as the designers of the performance’s implementation.
There are also half a dozen actors in the roles, and there are also substitute actors for them, the so-called Finns Party. understudies and swings. There are also child actors, of whom there are two or three per role. Conductor Eeva Konnu has a group of about 20 musicians to direct.
In addition, about a hundred people have participated in the implementation of the performance in terms of props, sets, costumes, camouflage, lights, sound and the script. A whisperer and babysitters are also needed, as the youngest people on stage are 7 years old.
Lights and shadows
The story of the musical emphasizes the power of music, community, hope and joy of life. There are also dark tones of illness, bullying, domestic violence and religious narrow-mindedness. And the ending is sad. In some places, the handkerchief was useful, I have to admit that.
Many people who skipped the theatre due to the coronavirus may have thought to themselves during the evening that they felt like they were in heaven. We have finally been able to move on to culture from home.
The whole ensemble is probably in the same emotional state. In the text of the programme, Jakob Höglund sums up the mood of the performers: “Dear audience! Today, we stand before you and are ready to do what has been forbidden for so long. With our arms around each other, we sing in the joy of our hearts, and then the ceiling rises to the heavens. Welcome.”
The theatre’s introduction promised that “this vigorous story, full of touching destinies and liberating joy, offers the viewer warmth and balm for the soul.” That is certainly what it offered.
Next, I have to go to Lilla Teatern to see the musical Once, directed by Jakob Höglund.