FI

Lähto

departure

There is a woman and a man, who have a complicated relationship. Confused, they stand on a stage, surrounded by clothes. Feelings and thoughts are expressed through the movement of their bodies – and the movement of the clothes, which have a life of their own.

Lähtö / Départ is 2013 creation of visual theatre & circus company WHS. Directed by magician and visual artist Kalle Nio, the performance brings to the stage a couple that has drifted apart from each other and is now floating in the middle of dreamlike imagery and illusions. Inspired by the work of 19th century magicians’ stage illusions, the performance creates a mysterious atmosphere where absurd humor and tragedy alternate. The piece will provide a unique theatre experience in which circus, magic, dance, clothing design and visual arts merge.

The work of visual artist, magician and stage director Kalle Nio is a combination of magic, visual arts, cinema, art-history, circus and theatre. In his stage performances and cinematic installations, he is an inventor, performer and a researcher creating encounters between past and the present, between magic and visual arts, between the high arts and the sideshows, between craft and technology, between real and illusions.
Kelle Nio is part of the Finnish art collective WHS together with Ville Walo and Anne Jämsä. The productions of WHS have been a crucial factor behind the rise of Finnish new circus. In the press the performances have been called avant-garde also in the larger contexts of theatre and art in general. Besides of creating their own plays, WHS also produces promising work from emerging artists.