moi moi! Shows in Linz are over and people back in or at their homes. Mental Finland will take a little break for now until event horizon. Thanks you very many everybody now!
There will NOT be any Mental Finland shows at least before autumn 2010, so if some one try to sell you a ticket into one, give him / her one ginger ale instead. All further shows will be announced here, so be back for furer further misinformation yes please.
Pictures from the Linz harbor where our show was presented in Hafenhalle09 - which btw. is being dismantled into bits and peaces now as after Mental Finland nothing would be worthy.
So ah, ahoi ahoi. While the fresh dust of Strasbourg’s is still standing on our shoulders we’re already on our tracks to Linz, Austria - where streets are straight and cars are shiny. And by the way this is the last two performances this year, take your chance! So with out further more:
Vilnius was busy but nice. Full house and warm people, yes yes.
next Mental Finland will perform their fresh jokes at Le-Maillon 22.10.2009 and 23.10.2009. 20% new material! We (royal we) did not gets any sense from their website using our computers at hand, so I’ll just publish the necessary contact info here:
Le-Maillon, Théâtre de Strasbourg - Tél. : 03 88 27 61 71
13 Pl Andre Maurois
Strasbourg, Alsace 67200 FRANCE
The The European Parliament is there same week, so be there or be elsewhere. haha.
Making of Mental Finland - a Documentary by Mia Jonkka on YLE TEEMA cultural channel 22.9.2009 @ 19.30, and repeated 23.9. @ 15.20 and 26.9. @ 13.15
This can be then viewed via the internets free for one month. Mostly people speak finnish and rather no subtitles are present. Sori about thaat. And abroad you might have to use a proxy.
The Mental Finland autumn 2010 tour starts today, 16 September at the Finnish National Theatre in Helsinki! We’re crazy happy to have the whole international superduper crew finally together again, and proud to have them as our guests in both mental and physical Finland. Everything’s ready’s for tonight’s kick-off, excitement perceptible in the air, the media, the whole universe… perhaps we finally find out in the next couple of weeks what Mental Finland is all about??
According to the box office staff Mental Finland is going to be “a bloody fight” - but I guess they we’re referring to the fierce ticket request; all ten performances are mercilessly sold out.
Mental Finland at the Lithuanian National Drama Theatre in Vilnius on 16 October, at Le Maillon in Strasbourg on 22 and 23 October and in Hafenhalle in Linz on 29 and 30 October - join us on tour!
So What are we doing after the orgy? Mental Finland shows in Brussels are over for now, but maybe maybe just maybe we’re heading back there in 2010. Lets see!
Now we are having a little break - doing some other projects, planning the future, arguing about the past, panicking about the present.
Our next stops are: Finnish National Theatre in Helsinki, 10 shows between 15.9. - 30.9.2009. Dates to be confirmed & ticket sale starting in april.
Meanwhile here elsewhere: we have been faced with some extreme criticism (or constructive analysis) towards the -length- of our jolly good show. For example: the King of Sweden, Carl XVI Gustaf Folke Hubertus has most likely been heard of mentioning in public to the Germany’s new Federal Minister for Economics and Technology, Mr. Karl-Theodor Maria Nikolaus Johann Jacob Philipp Franz Joseph Sylvester Freiherr von und zu Guttenberg, that the performance was excactly 4′33 minutes too long, while having some more tea, Karl-Theodor thoughtfully had or had not replied ”no, we want to see some strip dance!” wether then Mr. Colonel Count Claus von Stauffenberg possibly said out loud to née Donna Paola Margherita Maria Antonia Consiglia, Princess Ruffo di Calabria, “Scheiße, Scheiße! They should have cut at least all the stupid parts out!” at exactly on the same nasal helium voice tone as Pertti “Veltto” Virtanen of the “Basic Folk of Finland” accused Direktor Smeds of being Finnish Swedish.
Anyhow! For all of you and everybody else too we are now more than proud to present: Mental Finland; the last Brussels performance (in 2009!) just in 40 seconds. Now also available in full HD glory, whateverthatmeansnowihavetogopée.
Quite lot of attention from media and concerned taxpayers has been on the budget of our mental finnish brand shining jorney. Fear not! Yours truly will now put some light on the hot subject.
So why is it that all this cost over half million euros? Is it all the special effects and stunts? Are we eating some special expensive bananas? Are we now super rich? Answer for all this is unfortunately no. Simply put: we have employed almost 20 freelancers (actors, dancers, designers .etc) for about 5 moths, full time, full salary. So there you have it. Most of the money spent! Then add travel for 11 people from Finland to Brussels and back for 2 times plus accommodation. We have created jobs for finnish and international artists, and their salaries will soon return back to the capital flow via heavy personal consumption (nahkatakki, anyone?).
Is this really the most expensive stage production in Finland, ever? No it is not. It is big and expensive, yes, especially for an “outlaw” independent production, but depending how you calculate it any major production on National theatre or Helsinki city theatre mains stages easily exceed this sum.
…And for the concerned Finnish taxpayers: Finnish part of the budget is most kindly primarily funded from Suomen Kulttuurirahasto and Aflred Kordelin foundation - two private foundations mostly handing out profit from Nokia stocks, and OPM, ministry of education, which gives out earnings from the national lottery. On top of that comes a sum from City of Helsinki and co-production from the Finnish national theatre, both of them indeed do get their money mostly of your back skin. But that’s just about 10% of the total budget. There. Kiss kiss puss puss and thanks for everybody one more time.
Additional comment on the subject by mr. Smeds himself
Arrrrgh been lazy bloggers as all the champagne and positive press has made us proud and dizzy. But here we go again.
We, the real artists, aren’t really so much into the press reactions, as our ultimate and only motivation to create work is to praise and please our noodly goodness, the Flying Spaghetti Monster.
BUT for those of you who are - we spare some googlin’ trouble by choosing the nicest random cherries from the top. Thank you very many!
If you are here to find out, what is this Mental Finland and mr. Kristan Smeds really about, I recommend starting from this good article by Ivo Kuyl.
Jos koetat juurikin saada selville mistä Mental Finlandissa on oikein kysymys ja mitä Smeds oikein keilailee, suosittelemme lukemaan tämän Janne Saarakkalan artikkelin. Lisäksi Suomen Kuvalehden juttu viime kesältä “Smedsin teesit” ladattavissa tästä .PDF -muodossa. Ei muuta tänään, moi!
The last rehearsal, last try out, last aftermath, last supper… all went according to plan yesterday: technically high class stuff but pretty low on energy. Mental Finns are simply done with the rehearsal process. And saving all their adrenalin for today’s Big Bang Broadcast. Stay tuned!
The KVS photographer Bart Grietens came to see the try outs last weekend and fell in love with the show. He also captured very well the blue relief we’re all feeling being so close to the goal.
Eleonore aka Leo aka Leksa underwater with Domenico
In a Meet the Artist event that was recently held at the Finnish Seaman’s Church we finally found the answer: “Mental Finland is a dark or black, but very humoristic comedy or tragedy”. Any further questions?? Resumee of the event is available here in Finnish.
Counterphotographing continues, we took a picture of our Meet the Artist audience:
…and in this occasion also an enormous KIITOS to the Finnish community of Brussels, specially to all the wonderful people at the Benelux Institute, the Finnish Embassy and the Seaman’s Church (who would still let us use their sauna department… hmmm, we’ve exceptionally been behaving well). Thank you so incredibly many!!
This weekend brought along the try outs - first real and not only mental audience contact. Nice calmness mixed with concentrated excitement all over… We’re almost there!
The container can always be repainted just a little
Jurate and our dresser Nicole getting everything ready in the KVS costume atelier
Tommi and HP were so relaxed they decided to put up a flee-market on backstage just before the show
To be on the safe side we also forbid animal feeding during the try outs
“Theatre as a public sauna” - Interview of Kristian (in front) by KVS dramaturg Ivo Kuyl This text was originally carried out in Dutch for Etcetera, the Magazine for Performing Arts, nr. 115, february 2009: www.e-tcetera.be
Ivo Kuyl
Theatre as a public sauna
An interview with Finnish theatre maker Kristian Smeds
The theatre of Kristian Smeds is strongly embedded in society. It reveals hidden realities and is striking due to its especially powerful and energetic style. He usually writes his pieces himself or radically revises existing texts. He has received just about all the recognition a theatre maker in Finland can, especially since his most recent production Tuntematon Sotilas (Unknown Soldiers). He just founded the Smeds Ensemble, a small nomadic company that is open to international collaboration and that aims to travel in Finland as well as other countries. Read the rest of this entry »
