Youth Theatre Festival

Celebrating the imagination

The Oulu Children’s and Youth Theatre Festival has been introducing children and young people to the joy of theatre for over 40 years. The festival was completely revamped in the spring of 2024 by separating it into two different week-long events, one for young people and one for children. The festivals’ artistic director is Alma Lehmuskallio, the artistic director of the Oulu Theatre.

Curiosity is what unites the festival’s creators and attendees: what wondrous and weird things can we create together today? We want to feed this curiosity, to celebrate imagination and to remind us all what a miracle every human being is. A miracle can be a flower pot that magically disappears on stage, but it can also be a very ordinary thing: people’s experience of not being alone.

At best, during and after a theatre performance, it feels as if you are not the only one who has this specific experience or thought, which allows you to perceive something shared, and this is a source of comfort and relief.

Critical approach to norms

A shared characteristic of the festival’s performances is a critical approach to norms. Norms are assumptions about how people are or how they should act or behave. Norms can, often inadvertently, lead to someone feeling that they do not belong. On the other hand, a critical approach means that we take these assumptions with a grain of salt: why should you have to conform to a certain format? We want the festival performances to offer as many different ideas as possible about how and what you should be.

Programme proposals

The artistic director always welcomes any festival programme proposals. The festival is open for applications from May to October.

Contact information