“Above all, however, the encounter was something I had unknowingly longed for. It felt strangely good to be seen and to have a safe, silent interaction with a stranger. On the other hand, the need to be seen and its opposite, the fear of being seen, might be built-in human qualities.”
– kulttuurikuuri.fi

“Recover Laboratory is the feeling that you necessarily didn’t know you had inside of you. It is the things that you might fear, the things that you mourn or that make you happy. You decide.”
– Audience member

“Recover Laboratory is a work of art within a work of art within a work of art within a work of art within a work of art within a work of art within a work of art, of which you are one.”
– Audience member

– Audience member “It is a participatory, meandering work of art, where the artists give the viewer the opportunity to explore their own experiences and thoughts in real time, either as a passive viewer or by participating in a completely absurd and sometimes ridiculously mundane world.”
– Audience member

A large, metallic cube stands alone in the middle of the park. You open the heavy door and misty air swirls around you. You walk down the stairs and by the hundredth step you feel you’re already deep underground. Your breath vaporises in the dim air. A curious figure is squirming close to the ceiling. Around the corner you meet a gentle gaze, a slow movement, a fleeting time. You have entered the labyrinth.

Recover Laboratory’s masterpiece Underneath went literally under the skin and under the ground. The piece was realised in Meilahti, Helsinki, in the winter of 2018, and it was a surreal journey into a human and into oneself. There, underground, where everything mattered, you could escape everyday life into a completely different dimension – underneath everything.

Underneath was a multi-art labyrinth, stretching the boundaries of art fields. Each viewer entered the route alone, which guaranteed a very personal art experience. Along the way, the viewer encountered art; circus, theatre, music, visual arts, sound, light, video – you name it. All these parts formed a whole that expanded from the particle level to the universe-sized entirety, and each part explored human and the human experience in a different way. Along the way, you could participate, watch, touch, retreat… experience in any way you want.

Each viewer entered the cave alone, but worry not: Recover Laboratory’s characters and creatures are gentle, sensitive and polite. Human fear and anger have peeled off from these curious and strange characters. Underneath was a space where you could feel safe and truly alone with your own thoughts. There was only this moment and situation and eternal curiosity.

The performance was carried out in the civil defence shelter of the Helsinki Rescue Department, a space built into the bedrock. The cave was transformed into a surreal world, in the safe embrace of which the viewer could face not only the performance but also themselves.

Spleen is the French word for the melancholy characteristic of a modern, privileged person. It is a kind of feeling of detachment, boredom and sadness, experiencing helplessness and purposelessness Spleen is a constant and permanent personal disaster. It’s grey and deep blue – almost black, but never entirely.

Joy of Spleen was an immersive live installation and ritual-like performance. The piece took place at the Stockholm Fringe Festival, in the old heating factory in Kummelholmen, Stockholm, and in the old tunnels of Suomenlinna sea fortress, Helsinki, during the Viaporin Kekri festival. Joy of Spleen consisted of different routes and corridors along which the participant could experience performances, artworks, video, immersive installations, light and sound. These elements led the participant towards the center of the labyrinth, where only emptiness remains.

At the Stockholm Fringe Festival, Joy of Spleen was nominated for the Grand Prix out of a hundred works from 32 countries. Recover Laboratory’s wild and ambitious signature approach earned the group a Festival Spirit Award.
Read more: Kulttuurikuuri, SVT (på svenska) tai Circus Info (in Finnish)

Thank Yous:
Åbo Svenska Teatern, Cirko – Center for New Circus, Sirkusinfo, Finlands Institutet, Serot, Materialshop, Viking Line, InsideOut Escape Games, Mattolaituri, Anni Metsälehto, Iinu Torniainen, Annemari Kiviniemi, Pasi Warsell, Ropsi, Jaakko Törmänen, Onni Boi, Maiju Saarimaa, Riku Nieminen, Jenny ja Jimi, Anna Björklund, Heidi Hellsten, Thelma, Jukka Häkkinen, Ville Hakulinen, STOFF2017, Kummelholmen: Jan Watteus & Thorbjörn Johansson, Orion Theatre, Kungliga Konsthögskolan. Paula Lappalainen / Suomenlinnan hoitokunta, Violeta Salonen, Nhi Cao, Mella Pesonen, Ella Sinisalo, Henna, Elvia Sultana, Satu Anonen, Marika Zinchenko, Maria Salonen, Anna Suonsyrjä, Aarne Saarinen, Rapa Ripa, Jonne Harja, Eva Korhonen, Circus Info Finland, Agnes Kaszas / InsideOut Escape Games, Pasi Warsell / Cirko – Center for New Circus, Bright Finland, K-Rauta, Mika Jokela, Finnish Defence Forces

“I hope you can somehow understand what you just did to me. I will never forget this experience.”
– Jury member, Stockholm Fringe Festival

“You are exactly the artists for whom we wanted to organize this festival.”
– Stockholm Fringe Festival organizer

“An experience that has left me speechless even almost a week later. I was surprised by how strong emotions the show evoked in me. I relaxed, I forgot the outside world, I really immersed myself in the absurd world of the show.”
– kulttuurikuuri.fi

“I left the work in an entirely different state of mind and dimension than where I arrived! A really strong experience!”
– Audience member

Crew – Creutz Edition
Direction: Miradonna Sirkka
Artistic director: Sofi Häkkinen
Production: Inna Huttunen
Video design: Anna Björklund
Visiting artist: Jesse Avdeikov
Light and sound: Jaakko Törmänen, Sofi Häkkinen, Otto Mikkonen
Costume design: Hanna Herva
Performers: Anna Kankila, Ilkka Virkkunen, Ramona Reinvall, Miradonna Sirkka, Iida-Liina Linnea

Crew – Riffle Edition
Direction: Miradonna Sirkka
Artistic director: Sofi Häkkinen
Production: Inna Huttunen
Video and lights: Anna Björklund, Inna Huttunen, Sofi Häkkinen
Music: Samuli Kivelä

Thank Yous:
Katja Meriläinen, Cao Nhi, Ta Thi Kanh Chi, Mt Abu Hanif, Riikka Ojala, Jukka Ahonlehti, Hanna Herva, Jaakko Törmänen, Mia Rantavaara, Lauri Vanhatalo, Henri Honkanen, Pyry Arkimaa, Jesse Avdeikov, Otto Mikkonen, Hanna Herva