“Sometimes you can colour over the lines”
When you can trust the other person completely on stage, it also shows in the end result. Over the years, Vappu Nalbantoglu and Sanna-Junne Hyde have managed to build a relationship that carries them through any situation.
When the moment comes in the rehearsals of the roastery when Anni and Olivia are not needed, Vappu Nalbantoglu and Sanna-June Hyde, who play them, run to the small room upstairs of the City Theatre, giggling. The duo has been familiar with playing siblings since a few years ago, when Hyde played Aino-Kaisa Saarinen in a production called Tahto and Nalbantoglu played her sister Maija.
“The last time we played siblings, the siblings in the play distanced themselves from each other enormously. The roastery, on the other hand, is an interesting growth story for these siblings. In a way, they get to know each other again as adults,” Nalbantoglu says.
The two first got to know each other when Hyde had just moved from London to Finland. He was an outsider and a stranger in the Finnish theatre world. However, they immediately found common ground with Nalbantoglu.
“I think we were also connected by another culture through our fathers, which brought some kind of window between us,” Hyde says.
The interview situation is full of bubbling joy and laughter. Nalbantoglun
The relationship between Hyde and Hyde conveys warmth and mutual trust. Acting together has deepened their relationship, which carries not only on stage but also off it.
“In the spring, we made the video series Love me Tender and Murder at the Theatre for the City Theatre, which we wrote, produced and directed together. We’ve done so much together that it’s wonderful to just be able to trust each other so much,” Hyde says.
Paahtimo is a topical working life comedy that laughs in a gentle way at the roles and incidents of working life. It also evokes joy in the actors.
“Here is a fun and new Finnish text. It does not involve the same expectations as in plays that are already known. You get to do a whole new thing from a clean slate,” Nalbantoglu says.
“It’s been a long time since I’ve built my own role from the ground up. Now, whenever you play a role, you start to see the world around you through it. When the sibling relationship is at the center here, it’s wonderful to think and look at people somehow through that. In this story, too, it is about how different people act. One person doesn’t think too much, but trusts a certain instinct, and the other thinks for a very long time, so long that some things pass by completely,” Hyde ponders.
What was your first impression of each other?Sanna-June: Of all the people, I somehow remember Vappu from the moments when I came to the City Theatre. Vappu was the first to smile at me. He also told me a sickly clever joke, and at the moment where I least expected it. That is typical of Vappu.
Vappu: From the beginning, June had such sunshine and hilarious fun. I looked at what a ball of light that person was. We were really quickly on the same wavelength that things started to go smoothly right away. From the beginning, there was something really familiar about June and the kind of vitality and energy that I admired immensely.
You are already veterans in playing sisters. What would Vappu/ Sanna-June be like as a sister?May Day: June would be a lion sister who would stand by her side and defend through all the ups and downs. He would also come up with all kinds of fun games and build imaginary huts. If we had been sisters as children, we would have made plays together. June would certainly have directed, and I would have done the costumes.
Sanna-June: Vappu would be a favorite of my father and mother, because she is kind. I would have been a bit of a troublemaker.
Vappu: June would be a big sister, and I would be a little sister. But in the roastery, it’s the other way around.
Sanna-June: And I can’t stand it! I’ve asked if these could be replaced. I can’t be a little sister.
As the name suggests, coffee plays an important role in the roastery. How does Vappu/Sanna-June drink their coffee? Sanna-June: Vappu drinks filter coffee black. He always brings coffee with him when he comes to practice, always in a thermos, which he offers to others. He has also bought a coffee package for the entire team from day one. Personally, I always arrive three minutes late, and I don’t really have coffee, but I always bring candy or cookies.
May Day: June drinks espresso with oat milk. For June, coffee belongs to a certain moment, and coffee is more of a pleasure for her at certain times of the day. In between, he drinks tea.
What is Vappu/Sanna-June like as an actress?May Day: June is lightning fast at perceiving situations. I imagine that he is also really good at improvising. If the director asked Junea to do the same scene in five different ways, she would do it in eight different ways from different perspectives without losing the essence of the scene. June also never does anything self-evident.
Sanna-June: Vappu is really open on stage and is always involved in everything. I like actors who have the ability to take risks and humor. Vappu is also able to think for a moment in peace, while I get reactions immediately – a bit like these sisters in the play.
Is there something similar about Vappu/Sanna-June and her character?Sanna-June: Both of us could have played either of us. We have both sides.
Vappu: Something similar, but also surprisingly different. Well, Junea and Olivia probably have in common the kind of seizing of the moment that you can do things suddenly. If you asked June if they were going on a trip around the world tomorrow, June would immediately check if she had a sailing jacket.
Sanna-June: Vappu, on the other hand, like Anni, would think much longer about whether this is
Now it’s okay what others say, what people think at the workplace. When the decision was finally made, he would book all the trips and hotels, spend the whole night online straight and book the seats. He would also be on time at the airport in high heels and smelling of perfume, with a glass of sparkling wine in his hand. Personally, I’d be there again at the last minute.
What have you learned from each other over the years?Sanna-June: Being able to say things out loud and show your sensitive side. Vappu is an ambassador of good.
Vappu: I have learned courage, the ability to look at things more broadly and the courage to do things as if from outside the box. I’ve also learned that you don’t always have to color according to the lines. Sometimes you can color over the lines, and it can become something completely insane. So I’ve learned a certain kind of anarchy.
Sanna-June: In a way, I’m a nice girl myself, but next to Vappu, I look like an anarchist.
What does the general public not know about Vappu/Sanna-June?Vappu: June is really interested in dressing up and likes to play with clothes. If we’re going to a party, June might change into five different outfits and the end result will be a combination of all of these. June will be able to develop 50 outfits from three pieces of clothing.
Sanna-June: Vappu is a stinging socialite who can always answer questions in just the right way. He would be a really good diplomat. May Day has also revolutionized my understanding of horoscopes. He knows a lot about them and can deduce other people’s horoscopes very easily.
What kind of role would you like to see Vappu/Sanna-June in?Sanna-June: The first thing that came to mind was Chekhov. Or some modern cowboy thing where a cowboy dances ballet at the end. I would also see Vappu as an action type.
May Day: The female protagonist of a movie or series who somehow changes the world. It wouldn’t be just a drama either, but it would have something comedic in it as well. It would be wonderful to see her in an epoch as well, Jane Austen or Agatha Christie. Or Karen Blixen!