Review: Tahto

Willpower and skill

The play Tahto, about skier Aino-Kaisa Saarinen, is dedicated to
to all people who put themselves at risk and strive for their goals.

Many living legends have been made into plays, especially for summer theatres.
The play Tahto at the Helsinki City Theatre goes deeper than these biographical plays. It draws you in, it entertains and moves. Director Sini Pesonen has got the working group into a strong mood that reaches the audience!
The biography Tahto – Aino-Kaisa Saarinen’s Two Faces, written by sports journalist Pekka Holopainen, inspired writer Aina Bergroth to write a play. As a child of an artist family, he recognized and at the same time was surprised by how there is the same kind of perseverance and selfishness in elite sports and art-making.
The talented Sanna-June Hyde in the title role is fierce and athletically gorgeous, and Linda Zilliacus, who plays her worst rival Virpi Kuitunen, is devilishly friendly. The legal point of the drama is in their struggle with each other.
In between, coach Jamppa aka Jarmo Riski (Rauno Ahonen) is artistic, and the women are jealous of each other because of his attention. The story also includes the competition between Aino-Kaisa and her twin sister, and the parents who teach their daughter to live an athletic and meticulous life.
A skier whose physical characteristics were not entirely optimal for the top of the sport, according to skiing gurus, succeeds in his goal with willpower and years of relentless training.