Gymnastics Girls (Finland, Teatteri Takomo). Festival Theatre in Close-Up

With the Liepāja Theatre Festival Theatre in Close-Up, one of the key programmes of Liepāja – European Capital of Culture 2027 will begin this year – the Open Theatre Quarter.

In 2025, the festival will take place from 21 to 24 August, presenting five international theatre productions from Finland, Lithuania, and Poland, along with one production by the Liepāja Theatre.

This initiative is dedicated to the development and accessibility of theatre arts, strengthening the role of the genre on regional, national, and international levels.

Gymnastics Girls (Finland, Teatteri Takomo)

In Finnish (surtitles in English and Latvian)

Jumppatytöt (Gymnastics girls) is a theatrical performance about aestethic group gymnastics. It is based on the personal experiences of current actors and former gymnasts Katariina Havukainen, Ella Lahdenmäki and Inkeri Hyvönen. At the heart of the performance are questions about how gymnastics can affect girls’ self-esteem and self-image. “In the performance, we will discuss the inefficiencies of coaching culture and the power adults have over children, and we will also ask why the sport we love is not appreciated and highlighted enough in sports media,” the author’s say. Through humour, the show encourages sports fans to take action, empower themselves and demand change!

Although the show is about aesthetic group gymnastics, it’s target audience is broader: anyone who has ever practised something, or simply has a body and some kind of relationship with it, can see themselves in the performance and relate to it.

The performance is an ode to Finnish women’s gymnastics and to everyone who has ever practised to the point of tasting metal in their mouths. Diaries from 1998-2008 play an essential role in the creation of the play. Luckily, the girls kept writing them and, despite their shame, preserved them!

• Directed, Text and on stage: Katariina Havukainen, Inkeri Hyvönen, Ella Lahdenmäki
• Choreography: Antton Laine and Katariina Havukainen, Inkeri Hyvönen, Ella Lahdenmäki
• Sound design: Roy Boswell, Murrettumeri and Katariina Havukainen, Inkeri Hyvönen, Ella Lahdenmäki
• Tour lighting design: Heikki Paasonen
• Scenography for the tour: Heikki Paasonen and Katariina Havukainen, Inkeri Hyvönen, Ella Lahdenmäki
• Tour technician: Oscar Fagerudd
• Performance photo’s: Jukka Hämeenniemi

The project Liepāja Theatre Festival “Theatre in Close-Up” is being implemented as part of the Liepāja 2027 programme with funding provided by the Ministry of Culture, the City of Liepāja, and the municipalities of South Kurzeme and Kuldīga.