20.2.2025 | Culture

Devil and God meet at the HALL techno club

Text Johanna Heinonen 
Photos Tallinn Music Week, Jack Devant

On April 2 to 4, the contemporary ballet The Devil and God will be performed at the HALL Club in Tallinn as part of the Tallinn Music Week festival. This is the first time that a performing art work will also be represented at the festival.

The Devil and God is a contemporary ballet combining musical and literary elements, directed by Teet Kane that is based on the prose work The Devil and God by Estonian-Swedish writer Mare Kandre. The music is composed by Timo Steiner and Sander Mölder. On stage will be Cätlin Mägi‘s bagpipe ensemble, Laura Põldvere and dancers Kyoshiro Oshima and Jevgeni Grib (Estonian National Opera Ballet). The visuals are created by animator Juho Lähdesmäki and lighting designer Margus Vaigur.

The Devil and God is an allegorical tale of good and evil, with its origins in the protagonists’ childhood. God’s malicious gossip and his bullying spirit lead to the Devil’s frustration and disgust with all of humanity. This is the beginning of hell.

Finally, when heaven and earth have collapsed and hell overflows with people, the Devil sets out to find a new place for himself, his wife and humanity. The Devil and his wife lead the way, with mankind behind him and God last.

“For us, this performance is an exciting challenge,” says Elena Natale, the founder and director of the HALL Club, a Finnish-Italian who is delighted that the ballet is being performed at the venue. “HALL is going through a transformation. This work is a great opportunity for us to test a new approach where performing arts move from the stage to the dance floor and into the audience. The result is a performance in which the boundaries between professional dancers, video artists and the audience disappear, leaving only a dance towards a common existence.”

The Devil and God will premiere in March 2025 at Viimsi Artium. Tickets for TMW’s special screenings at HALL are available on Piletilevi.