Bulletin/invitation. The Bravo! festival offers outstanding performance art for children and young people

The miracle of birth, men in woollen socks, and rocket trips to space!

The themes of the festival performances include friendship, humanity and the acceptance of diversity. In our age of smart devices, performance art provides children and young people with experiences of empathy and presence and activities that feed the imagination. The approximately one-week-long festival programme can be enjoyed in Helsinki, Espoo, Vantaa and Kauniainen. The festival’s side programme features performances, family days and workshops intended for Finnish children and young people. The festival’s opening ceremony will be held at Central Library Oodi on 14 March at 1:00–4:00 pm.

Main programme:

• Gräs, a performance by the award-winning Swedish theatre company Claire Parsons Co, unleashes the imagination in a show for the whole family that combines dance, puppet theatre and circus arts.

• The Mexican Teatro Al Vacio’s contribution to the festival consists of two performances for different age groups. Cerca is a heartwarming story of life and friendship for children over the age of 3. Pulsar introduces children under the age of 3 to a changing landscape made of wooden blocks.

• The Danish physical theatre group Don Gnu will be performing the final part of their Men in Sandals trilogy at the festival for those over the age of 11. M.I.S. – Natten Lang examines the image of the modern man with the help of daring stage stunts, raw physicality and slapstick comedy.

• The Polish Children's Art Centre in Poznan’s magical dance performance for infants, Blisko, is about caring for one another. The performance seeks stories hidden within others in collaboration with the audience.

• An nyong, a co-production between Finnish circus artist Kalle Lehto and Korean mime Yun Pubit, takes a humorous look at differences with the help of mimicry, juggling and acrobatics.

• The British A Line Art group offers children a chance to practice astronaut skills, colour their own rocket and take a narrative and musical rocket ride to outer space – Ready Steady Lift Off!.

• Kompani Giraff’s circus performance Tvärslöjd features incredibly skilled acrobatics and magic. The performance is suitable for the whole family from ages 3 and up.

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The Bravo! festival is now being organised for the 11th time in collaboration with ASSITEJ, the International Association of Theatre for Children and Young People, the Cities of the Helsinki region and other cooperation parties.

For more information, please contact: Producer Riikka Siirala riikka.siirala@assitejfi.org, +358 50 3375927

Schedules, further information on the performances and venues: www.bravofestivaali.fi

Press photos: www.bravofestivaali.fi/medialle

Dear journalist, we would love to see you at the performances! For press tickets, please contact producer Riikka Siirala.