Review: Kuningatarnäytelmä
King Christina
A history lesson can also be entertaining like this: The Queen Play at the Helsinki City Theatre is a funny and also touching interpretation of the life of the rebellious queen of her time.
Screenwriter Jussi Moila and director Sini Pesonen find connections to modern times in the story of Queen Christina of Sweden, set in the 17th century: the question of gender and the right to one’s own body is more topical than ever. Wars continue and dissidents are threatened with violence.
Kristiina, who lost her father to a cannonball at an early age, received a princely upbringing. He was wanted to be a king, whose most important task would be feminine: to give birth to an heir.
The young actors shine: the intense Elsi Sloan grows from a stepping girl queen in her title role to a role model who finds her own voice. The highlight of the play is his singing, which I would have listened to more. Aino Sirje is the sensitive lady-in-waiting Ebba, Kristiina’s lover, and Alvari Stenbäck is guaranteed to make the audience laugh in his comic roles.