2021 - Thousand times yes
experimental chamber opera about the importance of listening. 70 minutes
in collaboration with composer Marja Ahti and artist Essi Kausalainen
Performed at Inkonst, Malmö (October 2021), Kunsthal Rønnebæksholm (May 2022) and Kiasma Theater (August 2022) 

An ancient organism in the Earth’s crust is rising towards the surface. Its movements resonate in the bodies of minerals, bacteria, fungi, gasses, and the atmosphere, causing instability and uncertainty that cluster into a web of unexpected conflicts. Our protagonist, a human called G, is unwillingly equipped with the skill to connect and communicate with different bodies and beings. She is summoned to mediate between the conflicting parties – and eventually with the ancient organism itself. 
Thousand Times Yes is a philosophical, haunting and poetic investigation of the limits and possibilities of language, communication, space and the body. The piece is a collaboration between composer and musician Marja Ahti, librettist Jenny Kalliokulju, and director Essi Kausalainen moving fluently across different genres and disciplines. The performance challenges the concept of opera, its aesthetics and hierarchical tradition. By telling a story of companionship and coexistence, Thousand Times Yes makes space for alternative futures. 

WORKING GROUP
Performers: Florian Feigl, Johanna Kalliokulju, Yuko Takeda
Local performers in Inkonst, Malmö (SE): Henning Fredriksson, Edith Glader, Ingrid Larsson
Local performers in Kiasma Theatre, Helsinki (FI): Ahti Leppänen, Etna Ruscica, Villa Ruscica, Aino Juutilainen, Saara Olarte
Local performers in Kunsthal Rønnebæksholm, Rønnebæksholm (DK): Henning Fredriksson, Ingrid Larsson and children from Rønnebæk school

Music: Marja Ahti
Libretto, stage design & paintings: Jenny Kalliokulju
Concept & directing: Essi Kausalainen
Lighting design: Sofia Ivarsson
Production coordinator: Johannes Juva
Director’s assistant: Laura Cemin

In collaboration with: Inter Arts Center, Kiasma Theater, Kunsthal Rønnebæksholm and Moderna Museet Malmö
With support by: the Nordic Culture Fund, Nordic Culture Point, the Arts Promotion Centre Finland, Frame, the Saari Artist Residency & the Finnish-Danish Cultural Foundation