Varkaus Theatre turns 110 – A musical play written to celebrate the centenary takes us back to the roots of Savoism

Four people dressed in old clothes are sitting on old lecterns on the theater stage.
Marja Sundgrén, Pietari Pentikäinen, Markku Ryytty and Jussi Immonen star in Savonmua’s sordid history. For the actors in the revue, more than 90 characters know a quick costume change.

Founded in 1913, the theatre is one of the oldest continuously operating arts institutions in Finland.

Varkaus Theatre is 110 years old this year and is one of the oldest continuously operating arts institutions in Finland. Even during the Winter War and the Continuation War, Varkaus Theatre staged 10-16 premieres a year.

Vuorinen says that theatre as an art form has remained relatively unchanged throughout the history of Varkaus Theatre.

– Advances in technology have added their own spice to shows, but theatre still tells stories from person to person.

Juha Vuorinen is sitting in the theater lobby.
Juha Vuorinen took over as director of Varkaus Theatre at the end of 2022.

The theater’s long history will be celebrated throughout the spring with a revue called Savonmua’s unending history, which will have its premiere at the end of March. In the musical play, the history of Savo is reviewed with the help of humor and numerous Savo characters.

– At the moment, there are more than 90 characters in the play, but even a week before the premiere, the play is about 40 minutes too long, so we have to do some qualifying, Honkonen laughs.

The show goes through the history and people of Savo in the long term. It discusses skirmishes, the formation of Savo’s borders, the heritage of the Savo people and diseases.

– There has been so much material that the show could make a trilogy, Honkonen says.