The Finnish film tells the story of Maarit. Since her transition from man to woman, Maarit lives a life apart from other people—distant from her estranged wife and daughter and marooned in a dead-end cleaning job far beneath what her education merits. When by chance she meets a handsome, married soccer coach named Sami, her carefully constructed solitude begins to crumble.
While Maarit is sure of herself and her new life, Sami may not be able to handle what society might think of her as a transgender woman. Complicating matters are Sami’s wife, Julia; Teo, a teenage soccer player he coaches; and Maarit’s daughter, Pinja—all of whom have their own agendas. Maarit finds herself at the center of a web of relationships in which everyone is heartbreakingly and fallibly human. At the same time, the ghost of her old life threatens to endanger the precarious balance of her new one.
Part psychodrama and part coming-of-age tale, Open Up to Me is spare and unfussy. It features superb acting from Leea Klemola, who won a Jussi (Finland’s highest film award) for her work in the lead role. As Maarit, she equally embodies vulnerability and determination as a woman who is anxious for her life to finally begin.
Hear some of Boston’s best virtuosi on an intimate scale and join them in lively roundtable discussions in comfortable, friendly, and eclectic surroundings. Last season’s salons featured various trios and quartets and included repertoire featuring both classics and new works by Mendelssohn, Mozart, Ibert, Tomassi, Vivaldi, Dvorak, and our own Steve Laven.
Saint-Saens Septet in E flat Major, Op. 65
Brahms Piano Quintet in F Minor, Op. 34
Dana Russian, trumpet
Rebecca Plummer, piano
Lena Wong, violin
Kristina Nilsson, violin
Jean Haig, viola
Steve Laven, cello
Barry Boettger, bass
60 minutes followed by a roundtable discussion. Tickets $30 | Student & Senior Discounts Available
Fusi, a 43 years old man still lives with his mother. His daily life is characterized by one of the monotonous routine. The appearance of vibrant Alma and young Hera will upset his old bachelor habits.
The director is Dagur Kári.
94 minutes. In Icelandic with English subtitles.
Free; donations accepted.
Films start at 1:30pm. Refreshments for attendees are served at 1pm. Lunch (not included) is available in the Kaffestugan, which is open until 3pm every Saturday.
After their public showing movies in our film series become part of the Scandinavian Library’s collection of DVDs available for borrowing by Library members.
NEWTON FESTIVAL OF THE ARTS: SALON CONCERT with PRO ARTE CHAMBER ORCHESTRA
FEATURING
Kristina Nilsson, violin
Stacey Alden, violin
Anne Black, viola
Steven Laven, cello
WORKS
Felix Mendelssohn
String Quartet No. 5 in E flat major, Op. 44, No. 3
I Allegro vivace
II Scherzo: Assai leggiero vivace
III Adagio non troppo
IV Molto allegro con fuoco
Antonin Dvořák
String Quartet in F major, Op. 96, “American Quartet”
II Lento
Steven Laven (b. 1963)
Original composition(s) to be introduced by composer.
The story of Maarit (Leea Klemola), a woman who has just gone through a sex reassignment surgery. She wants to rebuild her relationship to her teenage daughter and is also looking for a man to share her life with.
Film is directed and written by Simo Halinen. The film was nominated for the 2013 Nordic Council Film Prize.
95 minutes. In Finish with English subtitles.
Free; donations accepted.
Films start at 1:30pm. Refreshments for attendees are served at 1pm. Lunch (not included) is available in the Kaffestugan, which is open until 3pm every Saturday.
After their public showing movies in our film series become part of the Scandinavian Library’s collection of DVDs available for borrowing by Library members.
We regret to inform you that this year’s Midsummer Picnic scheduled for Saturday, June 18th at the Scandinavian Cultural Center has been cancelled. We do hope that you have the opportunity to join in the midsummer festivities happening in Shrewsbury on June 26th from 11-4. You can find more information on the event on the Swedish National Federation on Worcester’s Facebook page:
You will find that your ticket purchase will be fully refunded. If you should have any problems please contact Kerry at the Scandinavian Cultural Center via email at Kerry@scandicenter.org
At the beginning of the 20th century, Marie is married to Denmark’s world famous painter P.S. Krøyer. To be painted by him is a great honour and comes with great prestige. Marie, who adorns several of Krøyer’s paintings, is considered to be “the most beautiful woman in Europe”. Together with their daughter Vibeke they experience all the best life has to offer: parties, champagne and luxury. However, this is only the polished surface. Beneath it is living hell. After another of Krøyer’s violent fits of insanity and rage, Marie decides to leave for Italy with their daughter.
102 minutes. In Danish and Swedish with English subtitles.
Free; donations accepted.
Films start at 1:30pm. Refreshments for attendees are served at 1pm. Lunch (not included) is available in the Kaffestugan, which is open until 3pm every Saturday.
After their public showing movies in our film series become part of the Scandinavian Library’s collection of DVDs available for borrowing by Library members.
The economic system does not support the bicycle, because the bicycle can change the economic system.
Bikes vs Cars depicts a global crisis that we all deep down know we need to talk about: climate, earth’s resources, cities where the entire surface is consumed by the car. An ever-growing, dirty, noisy traffic chaos. The bike is a great tool for change, but the powerful interests who gain from the private car invest billions each year on lobbying and advertising to protect their business. In the film we meet activists and thinkers who are fighting for better cities, who refuse to stop riding despite the increasing number killed in traffic.
Join MassBike and the Scandinavian Culture Center on Saturday, April 9, 2016 at 11:00AM for a screening!
Refreshments will be available (including popcorn, of course!), The Kaffestugan will be open and serving Swedish pastries, open faced sandwiches, coffee, and other beverages.
Save the date – tickets go on sale soon!
MassBike will provide FREE bike valet at the event. Stay tuned for details about a ride convoy departing the Boston area for the event…
This program was made possible by a grant from the Barbro Osher Pro Suecia Foundation.
It is said that music does not lie in the notes themselves but between them, and it is exactly in that space where Boston-based Finnish fretless/fretted guitarist and oudist JUSSI REIJONEN‘s music thrives and blossoms. His critically acclaimed and Independent Music Award -nominated 2013 album, un, was a lifelong musical journey in the making – a journey that has spanned over three decades and four continents, and which has taken him from his native Northern Finland to years spent living in the Middle East, East Africa, and now the United States.
Where un brought together five seasoned musicians from Finland, Turkey, Sweden, Palestine and Spain to pay tribute to the traditions of American and Scandinavian jazz as well as the folk musics of the Middle East and Africa, Reijonen’s wandering muse has more recently found a home in that most symbiotic of musical constellations: the duo. Joined by his long-time collaborator, pianist Utar Artun from Turkey, the Finnish musician has begun to explore new sounds and shades of his handwriting in a more stripped down, naked setting, taking on the form of a fascinating multicultural collage where the open spaces and silences of Scandinavia effortlessly rub shoulders with the maqamat of the Arab world and the rhythmic richness of India and West Africa, creating a truly enchanting musical mosaic.
Saturday, April 16th | 7pm doors | 7:30 performance
tickets $15 general; $7 seniors | free for SCC members
ABOUT JUSSI:
Born in Rovaniemi, a small town on the Arctic Circle in northern Finland and moving between Finnish Lapland, the Middle East and East Africa, Reijonen has spent his life soaking up the sounds of various cultures. He studied music at the Pop & Jazz Konservatorio in Helsinki, as well as at Berklee College of Music and New England Conservatory in Boston where he earned his Master’s degree in the groundbreaking Contemporary Improvisation Department. While living in Finland, he played with the country’s top artists; he has also performed in the USA, Canada, Sweden, Latvia, Germany, France and Lebanon with top names such as jazz drummer Jack deJohnette, legendary flamenco singer Pepe de Lucia, multiple Grammy Award-winning flamenco guitarist and producer Javier Limón, Palestinian oud/violin master Simon Shaheen, fretless guitar pioneer David Fiuczynski, Turkey’s gypsy clarinet legend Hüsnü Senlendirici, and Lebanese nay virtuoso and multi instrumentalist Bassam Saba, among many others.
ABOUT UTAR:
Pianist, percussionist, composer and arranger Utar Artun has performed in workshops, concerts and clinics with Bobby McFerrin, Maria Schneider, Rudresh Mahanthappa, Simon Shaheen, Jason Lindner, Kenwood Dennard and David Fiuczynski. He is in involved with the Rhythm of the Universe Project as arranger, performer and orchestrator, as well as the Planet MicroJam Institute at Berklee College of Music. He has also composed and arranged over 50 pieces for symphony orchestra, as well as more than 100 pieces for brass bands and big bands. Featured on various studio albums as a piano player, arranger, and drummer. His compositions and arrangements are performed in USA, Switzerland, Turkey, Holland and Russia. Artun is working as an arranger for Ankara Kent Bigband and is currently on the faculty of Berklee College of Music in Boston.
Seasonal drabness may be the rule outside, but inside, the hall will be full of color. Elizabeth Hunter’s show of her signature rugs begins January 16 and runs through the end of March. The South Portland, Maine weaver will speak briefly on her work at 2pm Sunday, January 31st
Hunter studied in Oslo, Norway and Reykjavik, Iceland. The Scandinavian sense of simplicity and color is evident in her work. She has shown in Maine, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and New Hampshire. She is a member of the Maine Crafts Association and the Maine Crafts Guild. She also writes for Norwegian Textile Letter.
Gallery hours vary. Call 617.527.6566 for availability. All pieces available for sale. 15% of all sales will go towards the SCC’s Legacy Challange.
