This Saturday, on September 18, Sofi Oksanen's "Purge" reaches the stage at the Vanemuine Small Building.
A Finnish writer with Estonian roots, merited many awards and passionate polemic, also found lively resonance in Estonia.

The stage version of the piece is not the novel’s dramatization because in this case the process was opposite to what is customary: firs, a play was written that premiered with great success already in 2007 at the Finnish National Theatre and from there immediately found its way to stages of many other Finnish theatres. It was only after that when the novel was written which brought the author fame in abundance.

"Purge" is brought on stage by Liisa Smith who originates from Estonia but who is working in London. Liisa was born in Tallinn and graduated from the East Anglia University specializing in dramatic arts, she also acquired Masters degree from the London Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts (RADA) specializing in directing. "Purge" is Liisa Smith's second production in Estonia as well as at the Vanemuine. The play has been translated by Kalju Kruusa, designs created by Marge Martin. In roles: Marje Metsur, Maarja Mitt, Liisa Pulk, Karol Kuntsel, Margus Jaanovits, Maarius Pärn and Tarmo Tagamets (Võru City Theatre).

A story with a strongly dramatical tissue observes events from Estonia’s near past (years 1936-1992). In the post-soviet Estonian coastal village two completely different women meet in the whirl of stormy events: a sixty-year-old Aliide and a young girl named Zara from Siberia but with Estonian roots. Both women have had contact with mental as well as physical violence at different times. The stories from the past gradually unfold before us and bring a family saga to light that has been kept as secret for a long time. In the background of revolutionary social occurrences important questions are raised about (forced) options and their hinterland. Is it possible to rectify the injustice done, to understand and to forgive – if the victim was just one person or an entire country?

Sofi Oksanen is in Germany at the time of "Purge" premiere but she has promised to visit the Vanemuine production in November.