Review: Stalinin suloinen ruoska

Intense controversy in the years of danger

Going to the theatre is a bit scary if a comedy is to be expected. This time a gallows. In the worst case, there will be slipping on banana peels and other foolishness and mischief.

This time, the fear turns out to be unfounded. Stalin’s Sweet Whip, performed on the small stage of the Helsinki City Theatre, relies on strong role recommendations and diamond dialogue. The development of situations is not predictable, so surprise laughter rings out several times.

The events take place in the Hotel Torni in Helsinki in 1944, when the head of the Control Commission, Andrei Zdanov (the excellent Sixten Lundberg), has been sent to Helsinki against his will. The colonel general in question is Stalin’s trusted and ironclad man.

Dealing with the “fascist thugs” of the Finnish government, Paasikivi (Pekka Huotari) and Kekkonen (Petja Lähde), who is turning his coat, is a source of nerves for Zdanov, who suffers from heart problems. In the background, in a black-and-white video, Mannerheim (Joachim Wigelius) rumbles from time to time.

From time to time, the atmosphere is enriched with authentic footage, in which Stalin’s troops march in straight lines and tanks roll into bombed Berlin. The set design and costumes also deserve praise.

Director Kari Heiskanen describes the play on the City Theatre’s website as follows: “Stalin’s sweet whip opens up the period after the Continuation War, the ‘years of danger’, as they have been called, but it does so from the Soviet Union’s point of view.

Some of the actors have dual roles.

Merja Larivaara , among others, does the job excellently as Hertta Kuusinen and as the Soviet secretary of the separate department, who sows nervousness by writing things down in a way that is unfavourable to Zdanov. What if Stalin gets angry?