Ballet Finland KEHÄ

Ballet Finland’s KEHÄ represents four unique seasons. The evening features four compelling world premieres by four Finnish choreographers: Atte Kilpinen, Kenneth Kvarnström, Jouka Valkama and Reija Wäre. The premiere takes place on 4 December 2026 at Stoa in Helsinki.

The distinct moods of the seasons unfold on stage through four powerful performances. Atte Kilpinen’s Kirkastettu yö (Transfigured Night) pauses in silence and explores the connection between generations, where movement becomes illuminated like moonlight. Reija Wäre explores the tension between the individual and the group in spring, bringing new shades to the language of ballet in the performance Vastavalo (Against the Light). Kenneth Kvarnström’s mischievous triotrio plays with structure, repetition and subtle mysticism in a dialogue between three dancers. Jouka Valkama’s autumnal Varjojen muisti (Memory of Shadows) dives into memories, change and letting go, where shadows begin to move.

Atte Kilpinen: Kirkastettu yö

Ballet dancer Atte Kilpinen’s new work Kirkastettu yö (Transfigured Night) takes the audience into a winter forest, a quiet, moonlit moment where time seems to stand still and every movement becomes illuminated.

The duet is based on Arnold Schönberg’s composition Kirkastettu yö (Verklärte Nacht, 1899). Originally inspired by a story of two lovers, the music takes on a new meaning in Kilpinen’s interpretation: on stage, the work explores the love between a mother and son and the continuity between generations.

At the heart of the work is a powerful sense of presence, as well as the dancers being at different stages of their careers. What can dancers teach each other, and what can they learn about themselves in the process? The performers are Nina Hyvärinen / Ulla-Mari Mäkelä and Atte Kilpinen / Kasperi Kolehmainen.

Kenneth Kvarnström: triotrio

Three dancers.
Three parts.
Three hundred and fifty steps, thirty lifts and a touch of mystery.

Jouka Valkama: Varjojen muisti

Shadows create movement from memories, change and letting go.

Reija Wäre: Vastavalo

Vastavalo (Against the Light) explores the tension between the individual and the group, and what happens when one person stands out and the feelings of others begin to focus on them. Lightness and heaviness, softness and friction, assumed excitement and hidden sorrows exist side by side. Eight dancers move between the group and the individual, observation and participation, change and resistance. What happens when one person looks at the group against the light?