THEATRE AND STAGE 27
let a bright light through while the rest remains in darkness. It’s maybe a ten- minute scene, and there’s no change in lighting cue. But when the doors close and open again, it shifts the mood significantly. It’s a powerful moment.” Later on, the characters occupy bunk beds in one of the internment camps. “People are sleeping, and there’s one light that comes from behind,” Virtanen explains, barely illuminating the action. “They start to write letters to home,” he continues, “and we have a live video of one letter being written on stage – the video becomes the front light.” Finally, in the second act, it begins to snow. “We have ten snow machines on the ceiling, and the snow covers the whole stage. The floor starts to turn white, and it keeps raining and raining,” says Virtanen. Six of the machines were made in-house, finalised days before the opening night back in November. “The whole piece works really well,” Virtanen believes. “There’s nothing I would tweak. Usually there is, but with this, I don’t want to change anything.” EVERYONE’S INVITED Though performed entirely in Finnish, Day of Remembrance is available with English subtitles from February 2026. “We are sometimes asked, ‘Do you have translations?’ They are rare, but this has been a show where we’ve been asked a lot, so we said yes,” explains Virtanen. “These are live captions you can follow on your own device,” adds Koivuniemi. For those who require such captions, their phones will display coloured text on a black background, minimising the distraction to others. “This is the second or third production that is going to
“There are only two technical people running the shows on the Small Stage, so everything needs to be fast and easy,” Virtanen adds. The set design itself played a role in Day of Remembrance – especially the glossy stage surface, which created an intriguing, reflective effect. The floor, made from PVC ‘that had been coloured red’, according to Virtanen, could be used to bounce light. “I was afraid that everything would turn red, but it wasn’t the case,” he shares. “White light would reflect as white stripes on the walls.” The show’s set designer, Janne Vasama, opted for a barren physical concept. While he occasionally added a wooden ship or crate, the stage was otherwise left mostly empty. “I liked it,” admits Virtanen. “I had more freedom to shape different places with light and video. With almost every video, the reflection worked so well. “Although I hadn’t worked with Janne before, we immediately connected and the collaboration was smooth,” Virtanen continues. “I was excited about the final results and how the set came together.” SETTING THE SCENE Day of Remembrance ’s story begins in December 1931, when a group of hopeful migrants board a smuggler’s boat that is bound for the Soviet Union. After crossing the Gulf of Finland, they arrive in Stalin’s backyard just in time for winter, facing grim conditions such as tight living quarters, cold weather and forced labour. “There is a scene when the people are just arriving in Russia,” Virtanen explains. “A black wall comes down for the first time, the doors open in the middle and
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