The internationally renowned documentary theatre masterpiece, which has toured over 40 cities worldwide, premieres its Oulu adaptation on the Oulu Theatre Main Stage on Friday, August 14. The production runs for just over a week.
Premiering on Friday, the documentary theatre piece 100% Oulu constructs a unique portrait of present-day Oulu. The performance turns abstract numbers into living people and gives the audience an opportunity to view Oulu from a new perspective.
This production adapts the internationally renowned 100% City concept by the award-winning Berlin contemporary theatre collective Rimini Protokoll, which the group has staged worldwide from Tokyo to Paris since 2008. Directors Helgard Haug and Daniel Wetzel from Rimini Protokoll arrived at the Oulu Theatre to direct the piece.
The idea behind the work involves bringing everyday life and statistics alive on stage. Daniel Wetzel describes the dynamic of the piece by comparing it to a bustling urban space:
“Imagine standing in a city center where people cross the pedestrian walkway—some riding bicycles, some on e-scooters, others carrying shopping bags. Some live on the outskirts, some closer to the center, and some in the countryside, but they all share the same urban space together. Then someone starts asking them questions. People suddenly start taking sides and forming groups. Old and young, children and the elderly, youth and teenagers… they all occupy the same pedestrian street, and suddenly this moment transforms into a stage,” Daniel Wetzel describes.
“We want to see what they think and how they live here in Oulu, and we also want to display that.”
The Oulu production imparts a strong northern identity to the internationally successful concept. The German directors view Oulu as a place where geography, climate, and history generate a unique dynamic:
“No one has ever invited us this far north, nor have we ever visited a city where water, wind, and trees maintain such a powerful presence,” the directors state.
Oulu appears to them as a city striving for growth, with a history rich in contrasts:
“The history of the city and its extreme highs and lows make this place truly fascinating. These factors naturally exert a major influence on life stories, people, how community life functions here, and who holds what role. In comparison, Oulu remains a moderately small city by population, yet vast in geographical size.”
According to the directors, meaningful stories emerged from the lives of the participants, where global history and individual fates intersect movingly on stage:
“The extent to which wars (and the fear of future war) shape collective memory through individual experiences deeply struck us,” says Helgard Haug.
Participants include an individual who spent early childhood as a child evacuee in Sweden, learning native Finnish only years later upon returning.
“This person stands on stage together with people who arrived here when the war in Ukraine broke out,” Haug explains.
Rimini Protokoll enjoys widespread recognition for participatory and documentary theatre pieces. In their work, the group examines social structures, statistics, and everyday experiences, transforming them into theatrical events centered around everyday people:
“Theatre provides an ancient medium for examining issues from multiple perspectives. Generally speaking, this represents the core of the 100% Oulu performance. Instead of a single image, we see many different pictures captured by people from widely varying angles and through many different mediums.”
“In a sense, we act more as a vehicle for expression and aim to make every participant shine. We give their expertise, experiences, character, and fantastic biographies a stage,” Daniel Wetzel says.
100% Oulu & Rimini Protokoll
Performances: On the Oulu Theatre Main Stage, August 14–22, 2026 (6 performances total).
On Stage: 100 volunteer Oulu residents.
100% City Concept: Helgard Haug, Stefan Kaegi, and Daniel Wetzel.
Direction: Helgard Haug and Daniel Wetzel together with the participating Oulu residents.
Rimini Protokoll: An award-winning contemporary theatre collective founded in Berlin in 2000, known for works utilizing real-world phenomena and everyday people. The group performs regularly at the Berlin Theatertreffen event and holds numerous major awards, including the Faust Award, the Swiss Grand Prix Theater, the Silver Lion at the Venice Biennale Theatre, and the Mülheimer Dramatikerpreis.
Find out more about the production and purchase tickets here: 100 % Oulu – Oulun teatteri
