A new Finnish musical drama written by Sami Keski-Vähälä and adapted and directed by Paavo Westerberg, Nauravan kulkurin tarina tells the story of how Vesa-Matti Loiri became an artist beloved by the entire nation.

Poignant, funny and poetic, Nauravan kulkurin tarina is a hymn of praise to art and entertainment, told through Vesa-Matti Loiri’s life and carried along by the timeless music he performed.

What lay behind the songs audiences loved and the comic and tragic roles that went down in history? What passion and inner struggles gave rise to Loiri’s art? And what was the life that Vesku missed out on?

The Main Stage comes alive with Vesku’s best-known characters, from Nasse-setä to Turhapuro. We hear songs that mattered to Loiri, performed and interpreted by the man himself, and meet the people who were important to Vesku. Art is created, but in his private life, something is constantly falling apart.

The audience is invited to experience the origins of Loiri’s art—and the price this beloved national artist paid for his honesty, uncompromising spirit and passion.

The play is a tribute to Vesa-Matti Loiri’s art and to the people without whom it would never have come into being. At the same time, it offers a portrait of a Finland once united by a shared culture—a Finland that no longer exists.

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