Mad in Finland
As part of the Les Elancées festival
With humour and energy, the eight artists of Mad in Finland recount stories of their gentle country. One thing they all have in common is that they are Finnish performers who left their homeland to pursue their passion for the circus. They also all felt the need to question their identity. What does it mean to be Finnish today? Under the big top, they embody eight sisters who are also accomplices. Through a series of scenes, the performers traverse the Finnish imagination: winter and its snow-covered cabins, forests populated by animals, the Nokia generation, the sauna… All these themes are punctuated by a myriad of acrobatic figures. Trapeze artists, tightrope walkers, and clowns amaze the audience with a background music of guitar, cello, and piano to create a generous narrative that oscillates between nostalgia and bursts of laughter.
Distribution
Elice Abonce Muhonen hair suspension, drums
Mirja Jauhiainen trapeze, cello, bass
Jenni Kallo clown, drums
Heini Koskinen aerial fabric, violin
Sanja Kosonen tightrope dancing, guitar
Nelli Kujansivu Risley act, percussions
Milla Lahtinen swinging trapeze
Teija Sotikoff vocals, keytar, flute
Gautier Gravelle Set and stage management
Nicolas Gastard Lighting technician
Franck Beaumard Sound technician
Yvain Lemattre / Galapiat Cirque Administration
Marine Plet / L’Avant Courrier Distribution
CONCEPT/ORIGINAL CASTING Elice Abonce Muhonen, Heini Koskinen, Lotta Paavilainen, Mirja Jauhiainen, Sanna Kopra, Stina Kopra, Sanja Kosonen
Acknowledgements
SUPPORT French Ministry of Culture – DRAC Brittany; Regional Council of Brittany; General Council of the Côtes d’Armor; Saint-Brieuc Agglomeration; Town Hall of Langueux – Le Grand Pré; Institut Français; DGCA; DMDTS Touring support Festival Tant qu’il y aura des Mouettes (Langueux); La Cascad centre for clown and circus arts,
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Remy Sciuto (Music), Siri Hamari (Artistic consultant), Romain de Lagarde (Lights), Lucie Plessis (Illustration), Sebastien Armengol, Klara G, Paola Jorquera (Photographs), and Sauna, Joulupukki, Carina, Saxenberg, Claire Peysson Bourg Saint Andéol; Arts Council of Finland; La Comédie de Caen, Centre Dramatique National de Normandie; La Brèche, Pôle National des Arts du Cirque, Cherbourg Octeville
Biography
Now based in Langueux in the Côtes-d’Armor, Galapiat Cirque was founded in 2006 in the corridors of the circus schools of Rosny-Sous-Bois and the CNAC national circus centre in Châlons-en-Champagne. The association was formed when four, then five, then six circus artists met: Sébastien Armengol, Jonas Séradin, Lucho Smit, Sébastien Wojdan, Moïse Bernier, and Elice Abonce Muhonen.