Name: Innocence
Start: 2022-10-26T00:00:00.000Z
End: 2022-11-24T00:00:00.000Z
Location: Finnish National Opera

Organization

Conductor

Clément Mao-Takacs

Costume designer

Mel Page

Sound designer

Timo Kurkikangas

Set designer

Chloe Lamford

Lighting designer

James Farncombe

Choreographer

Arco Renz

Stage director

Simon Stone

Dramaturge

Dramaturg and translator

Aleksi Barrière

Singer

Baritone

Jyrki Korhonen

Priest

Mezzo-soprano

Jenny Carlstedt

Waitress

Soprano

Iida Antola

Bride

Tenor

Markus Nykänen

Groom

Tuomas Pursio

Father-in-Law

Anu Komsi

Mother-in-Law

Lucy Shelton

Teacher

Vilma Jää

Student 1

My Johansson

Student 2

Julie Hega

Student 3

Simon Kluth

Student 4

Actor

Camilo Delgado Díaz

Student 5

Olga Heikkilä

Student 6

Finnish National Opera

Innocence

Helsinki

Finland

Public

Finnish

Swedish

English

Approved

Kaija Saariahon, Sofi Oksasen ja Aleksi Barrièren uutuusooppera Innocence  on ravisteleva, kahdessa aikatasossa liikkuva ooppera menneisyyden haavoista, ajan...

Innocence Saariaho

All [family celebrations] have their secrets
The world premiere of the new opera by Kaija Saariaho, Sofi Oksanen and Aleksi Barrière at Festival d’Aix-en-Province on 3 July 2021 was a major success. The premiere at the Finnish National Opera will take place on 21 October 2022.

Innocence is a ravishing opera that takes place in two parallel periods of time. It deals with the wounds of the past, the passing of time, and the act of letting go. A wedding party is underway in Helsinki, but the groom’s family has a dark secret. When the events from a decade ago begin to unravel, the guests face a moment of truth.

Suggested age guidance +12. The opera includes scenes about a school shooting.

Innocence is a co-production of the Festival d’Aix-en-Provence, the Finnish National Opera, the Royal Opera House in London, the Dutch National Opera, and the San Francisco Opera. In partnership with the Metropolitan Opera.

Production photos: Jean Louis Fernandez, Festival d’Aix-en-Provence, artists’ photos: Toni Härkönen.
An international group of guests are celebrating a wedding in Helsinki. The fiancé is Finnish, the bride Romanian, and the mother-in-law French. But suddenly, during the wedding banquet, the Czech waitress feels ill…

The groom has a dark secret and the wedding banquet is haunted by tragic events that took place years earlier. Ghosts revive their memories of the trauma, there is a guilty haze, a lost innocence.

The full synopsis can be found in the programme leaflet.

Performance credits (Cast & Crew )

Cast

Crew