CIRCOPERA An Extravaganza for the Whole Family, to be Streamed Worldwide by the Finnish National Opera

CircOpera, a production combining dazzling acrobatics with gems of classical music, will be streamed live from the Finnish National Opera in Helsinki on Friday 30 September. The Helsingin Sanomat newspaper will host the performance on its online TV channel HSTV beginning at 18:45 Finnish time (UTC +3). The performance can also be viewed in theStage24 service of the Finnish National Opera and Ballet, either live or on demand.

The production received rave reviews in the Finnish press after last Friday's premiere, and all performances are now sold out. Helsingin Sanomat wrote: "The Finnish National Opera tore down boundaries again, with a bang. CircOpera, as the name says, brings together opera and the art of circus in a compelling combination. The audience at the premiere rewarded the performers with a thunderous standing ovation and shouts of 'bravo'."

The vocal soloists are Ville Rusanen, Mika Pohjonen, Hanna Rantala and Koit Soasepp, who unlike in a conventional opera performance engage very physically, for example by singing upside down, climbing up a wall or swinging over the audience. CircOpera also features the Orchestra and Chorus of the FNO at full strength. A circus performance with such a large ensemble is unique in the world. The circus performances featured include acrobatics, tightrope walking, juggling and contemporary circus acts. The circus performers are international top names in their field, and the dancers are from Ballet Finland.

Live and on-demand performances form a key part of the new online service of the FNOB whose purpose is to serve a wider audience independent of constraints of time or geography. All streamed broadcasts and recordings may be viewed on the digital stage at theoopperabaletti.fi website, Stage24, free of charge. The FNOB is partnered in this service by the HSTV online service of the Helsingin Sanomat newspaper and by the Finnish Broadcasting Company (YLE). The FNOB is also involved in The Opera Platform, a collaborative project of European opera houses and the Arte European Culture Channel (theoperaplatform.eu)