On Friday 16th January, an unprecedented moment will be experienced at the Oulu Theatre when the Sámi opera Ovllá receives its world premiere. The work is told from the perspective of the Sámi, the only Indigenous people of the Nordic countries, and addresses the painful consequences that state-led oppression has left on ever new generations.
Ovllá is written by Sámi playwright Juho-Sire/Siri Broch Johansen, composed by Cecilia Damström, and directed by Heta Haanperä. The opera is performed by the Oulu Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Chief Conductor Rumon Gamba and Aku Sorensen, Artistic Director of the Luosto soi! festival. The production also features visiting designers who are Sámi artists.
Major exhibition of Sámi art and duodji
On Friday, the Oulu Art Museum will open the exhibition Eanangiella – The Voice of the Land. This major exhibition of Sámi art and duodji introduces visitors to the diversity, resilience, and endurance of Sámi culture.
The exhibition brings together works from the touring Sápmi Triennale exhibition of contemporary Sámi art, duodji (traditional Sámi handicraft), works by different generations, and a soundscape that permeates the exhibition space.
Curators Inga-Wiktoria Påve, Fredrik Prost, and Áilu Valle guide visitors through themes that range from ancestors and paths of memory to borderlands between worlds, the land itself, questions of green colonialism, spirituality, and the adornments of life.
Guided tours at the museum
- Eanangiella – The Voice of the Land -Exhibition tour guided in Aanaar Sámi livđe 17th Jan at 12:00 (the tour is included in the admission ticket)
- Curators Tour: Eanangiella – The Voice of the Land 17th Jan at 14:00 (the tour is included in the admission ticket)
- Eanangiella – The Voice of the Land – Exhibition tour guided in Skolt Sámi leu’dd on 18th Jan, 12:00–12.45 (the tour is included in the admission ticket)
Oulu2026 Opening Festival takes place Jan 16-18 2026. Almost 200 events and 20 venues take over Oulu City Center. See the full schedule
