Dangerous Relationships is a wildly imaginative update of the well-known classic
Leea Klemola and Rosa-Maria Perä’s adaptation of Christopher Hampton’s play Dangerous Relationships will premiere at Studio Pasila on 28 September. The author duo transfers the original story and characters from the social circles of 18th-century France to a church-sponsored Finnish theatre struggling with financial difficulties in the 2010s. The play is directed by Anna-Elina Lyytikäinen and the main roles are played by Riitta Havukainen, Merja Larivaara and Antti Virmavirta.
The theatre’s activities are sponsored by the church, so the programme must be biblical. Director Raili Wahlman (Riitta Havukainen) definitely wants the house’s own actor Rauno de Tourvell (Antti Virmavirta) to play the main role of Satan, which is based on the Old Testament. As a result of the intrigues of the passionate theatre makers Wahlman and the theatre director Mertanen (Merja Larivaara), Wahlman begins to seduce de Tourvell, using all the rules of art and sexuality, so that he agrees to play the role. When real, genuine love intervenes, things get completely out of hand.
“This is an obscenely funny, ugly beautiful and rough love drama that settles into the Finnish mindset. Here we go to the core of basic humanity, where the fear of loving and being rejected is strongly present,” says director Anna-Elina Lyytikäinen .
In Leea Klemola and Rosa-Maria Perä’s adaptation of the original play, the twists and turns of the play, the goals of the characters and the relationships between them remain – which are still life-threatening. This time, the plotters are the women, who are run by the men. Despite its tragic nature, the play has many comedic features, which stem above all from Klemola’s original, recognizable and sometimes even harsh use of language.
The other roles in the play are played by Eija Vilpas, Pertti Koivula, Juha Jokela, Sari Haapamäki and Mikko Virtanen. The set design was designed by Katariina Kirjavainen and the costumes by Elina Vättö. The lighting design is by Teppo Saarinen and the sound design by Maura Korhonen. The camouflage was designed by Hanna Piispanen.
Dangerous Liaisons is based on Christopher Hampton’s play (1985), adapted from Pierre Choderlos de Laclos ‘ epistolary novel of the same name (Les liaisons dangereuses), published in 1782. The general public remembers the work from the blockbuster film Lies and Seducers (1988).
Anna-Elina Lyytikäinen is a Finnish actress, director and screenwriter. She has worked as the main director of Tampere Theatre from 2016 to 2021. He has previously worked as an actor at the Helsinki City Theatre from 1991 to 1997 and directed the plays Enigmatic Variations (1998) and Dynamite Chip (2003). Lyytikäinen has written four plays: On Mercy (2007), Spiderman’s Revenge (2011), Embrace (2015) and 1918 – Theatre in Battle (2018). Anna-Elina Lyytikäinen was elected as the director of Hämeenlinna Theatre in January 2022 and will start in her position in October 2022.
Read Anna-Elina Lyytikäinen’s interview on the theatre’s website: I don’t mind this!
Dangerous Relationships premiere 28.9.2022 at Studio Pasila (Ratamestarinkatu 5)
Tickets: student ticket €18.50 (Mon-Thu), pensioner ticket €34 (Mon-Thu), basic ticket €37
Helsinki City Theatre’s ticket office and customer service by phone (09) 394022 Mon-Fri 9-17.30. Ticket offices First line 2, Mon-Fri 11 am – 5.30 pm, Eläintarhantie 5, Sat (on performance days) 11 am – 6 pm and one hour before the performance and Lippupiste, Mon-Sat 9 am – 9 pm, Sun 10 am – 6 pm, tel. 0600 900 900 (2 €/min + local network charge) www.hkt.fi
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Press photos can be found in the image bank and press releases in the newsroom.
Further information, media ticket reservations and interview requests:
Kaisa Pelkonen, Communications Manager , kaisa.pelkonen@hkt.fi, 040 552 3788
Helsinki City Theatre, Ensi linja 2, 00530 Helsinki