Introduction

The subject of this book is the Finnish National Theatre during the two decades preceding the end of the Cold War. During this era, the 1960s generation with their new ideas on society and theatre matured and took hold; simultaneously, a Europe divided by the Iron Curtain matured and broke out of its restrictive chains, culminating in the collapse of the Iron Curtain. Nations and their national theatres faced up to the challenges of a world in flux. As a country uniquely caught between East and West, these changes deeply affected Finland, permanently altering Finnish society and its power structures. The five subchapters deal with this societal and cultural frame. They survey the National Theatre’s status, mission, and operational disciplines as well as the works’ theoretic and methodological principles.