The Pond is a bittersweet story about growing up and having the courage to be yourself.
This wordless performance tells the story of a chicken named Candy who dreams of being an elegant swan. Inspired by her dreams, Candy takes the audience on a journey to a world filled with imagination, where play and creativity help us understand emotions and ourselves on an ever-deeper level.
The performance combines clowning and dance, and it also addresses difficult topics with gentleness and humour. The performance is intended for children ages four and up.
The Pond marks the first collaboration between Dance Theatre Hurjaruuth and Carl Knif Company. Knif last visited Hurjaruuth in 2019 when he created a stage adaptation of Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland. The Pond also marks Knif’s first collaboration with clown Gabriela Muñoz. The story is based on Muñoz’s idea, and she has co-written the script with Knif.
The cast also includes dancers Anna Stenberg, Riku Lehtopolku and Eero Vesterinen, all long-time collaborators of Carl Knif Company. Other long-time collaborators include sound designer Janne Hast as well as light and set designer Jukka Huitila, while Valentina Muñoz designs the costumes.
The performance premieres on 17 September at 6 pm on Hurjaruuth’s stage, with performances ongoing up to 17 October.
“It’s truly a pleasure to return to Hurjaruuth after seven years, this time with a co-production. It’s also especially great to do a wordless performance for children with clown Gabriela Muñoz and my dear dancers Riku Lehtopolku, Anna Stenberg and Eero Vesterinen. The idea for the performance came from Gabriela, and together we’ve created the story.
Gabriela plays Candy, a chicken who dreams of being a swan. Candy is a wanderer and a seeker, and one day her journey leads her to a theatre. The magic of the stage allows her to dream herself into a world where she is a swan among others – but the encounter doesn’t quite go according to plan.
Through gentle humour, we want to tell this bittersweet story about a longing to belong and how to accept yourself just as you are.“
– Carl Knif / Carl Knif Company
“It has been a great pleasure to bring together Gaby and Calle – two artists I greatly admire – to create a performance that will delight our young audience. My artistic vision for Hurjaruuth is to bring together dance and circus artists to create high-quality performing arts for children and the adults who accompany them to the theatre. The Pond is a charming and ambitious performance, both in terms of content and visuals, and I believe it will delight an audience of all ages.“
– Jyrki Karttunen / Dance Theatre Hurjaruuth
