Marja Merisalo (born on 3 April 1965

Oulu Oulu ( , ; ) is a city in Finland and the regional capital of North Ostrobothnia. It is located on the northwestern coast of the country at the mouth of the Oulujoki, River Oulu. The population of Oulu is approximately , while the Oulu sub-regio ...

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

) is a Finnish

choreographer Choreography is the art of designing sequences of movements of physical bodies (or their depictions) in which Motion (physics), motion or Visual appearance, form or both are specified. ''Choreography'' may also refer to the design itself. A chor ...

dancer Dance is an The arts, art form, consisting of sequences of body movements with aesthetic and often Symbol, symbolic value, either improvised or purposefully selected. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoir ...

director Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''D ...

and cultural coordinator. She has the Master of Arts degree in Dance from the

Helsinki Theatre Academy The Theatre Academy (, ) is one of the three academies of the University of the Arts Helsinki and offers education in theatre and dance. It is Finland's largest education provider in its field and, with the exception of acting, the only one in th ...

(Teatterikorkeakoulu) She represents contemporary art dance where she has developed her own styles. Marja Merisalo has worked as a choreographer, dancer, actor, producer as well as a director of theatre and dance projects. She has worked in numerous productions and theatres since 1982, including Q-teatteri in

Helsinki Helsinki () is the Capital city, capital and most populous List of cities and towns in Finland, city in Finland. It is on the shore of the Gulf of Finland and is the seat of southern Finland's Uusimaa region. About people live in the municipali ...

Helsinki City Theatre The Helsinki City Theatre (; ) is a theatre located in Helsinki Helsinki () is the Capital city, capital and most populous List of cities and towns in Finland, city in Finland. It is on the shore of the Gulf of Finland and is the seat of sou ...

, the Student's Theatre of Helsinki (Ylioppilasteatteri) and the

Finnish National Theatre The Finnish National Theatre (), established in 1872, is a theatre located in central Helsinki on the northern side of the Helsinki Central Railway Station Square. The Finnish National Theatre is the oldest Finnish speaking professional thea ...

. Merisalo worked in the city of

Pori Pori (; ; ) is a city in Finland and the regional capital of Satakunta. It is located on the west coast of the country, on the Gulf of Bothnia. The population of Pori is approximately , while the Pori sub-region, sub-region has a population of a ...

as the Regional Artist under the

Ministry of Education and Culture A ministry of education and culture is a cabinet position in the governments of several nations. In some nations the ministry of education and the ministry of culture are separate departments; in others, the ministry of education and culture al ...

during the years 2009–2011. Her main work was coordinating numerous cultural activities in the municipality of

Satakunta Satakunta (in both Finnish language, Finnish and Swedish language, Swedish, ; historically ''Satacundia'') is a Regions of Finland, region ( / ) of Finland, part of the former Western Finland Province. It borders the regions of Southwest Finland ...

in western Finland. Later on, she also made project-planning for an artist's network called ArtPeople in Helsinki during her work as cultural coordinator in the area of Arabia in Helsinki under Arts Promotion Centre Finland (Taiteen edistämiskeskus, formerly

Arts Council of Finland The Arts Promotion Centre Finland (, ) is an expert and service agency for promoting the arts in Finland. Arts Promotion Centre Finland is organized under the Ministry of Education and Culture. It is funded by the Ministry of Education and is compo ...

). Since 2006, Merisalo has been a member of the Theatre of Eternal Values (TEV), an international theatre group based in Italy. She has been touring with the group's productions internationally in West End -

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

Milan Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

Geneva Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...

Basel Basel ( ; ), also known as Basle ( ), ; ; ; . is a city in northwestern Switzerland on the river Rhine (at the transition from the High Rhine, High to the Upper Rhine). Basel is Switzerland's List of cities in Switzerland, third-most-populo ...

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

and

Ankara Ankara is the capital city of Turkey and List of national capitals by area, the largest capital by area in the world. Located in the Central Anatolia Region, central part of Anatolia, the city has a population of 5,290,822 in its urban center ( ...

. Moreover, besides

, she has also performed internationally in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

, the

Baltic countries The Baltic states or the Baltic countries is a geopolitical term encompassing Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. All three countries are members of NATO, the European Union, the Eurozone, and the OECD. The three sovereign states on the eastern co ...

and

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

. She has also created numerous dance and theatre projects, one of the latest being "Echoes from Karelia", which brings together a fusion of traditional Karelian folk culture with modern elements. The project has toured in Finland, Sweden, Russia and Italy.

Choreographies

*''GAM'', Tana bru, Norway 2023 (dance theatre project together with Sami children) *''Ilmatar in India'', Sortavala, Russia 2019 (residence project in KARN, Karelian Art Residence Network) *''Echoes from Karelia'', Zelenogorsk and Sortavala, Russia 2015 and 2019, Sweden 2016, Italy 2018 *''Tid och Energi'', Vantaa 2008, Pori 2011. *''The Tyger'', London 2007,

Genova Genoa ( ; ; ) is a city in and the capital of the Italian region of Liguria, and the sixth-largest city in Italy. As of 2025, 563,947 people live within the city's administrative limits. While its metropolitan city has 818,651 inhabitants ...

, Italy 2007. (also
Govisummer 2007 program
*''Adimaya'', Sydney, Australia 2006. *''Elefanttimetsä'' ("Elephant Forest"), Dance Theatre Raatikko, Finland 2004. *''O Lal Meri'', Italy 2004. *''Mahamaya'', Mumbai, India 2003, Italy 2003. *''

Gypsies Are Found Near Heaven ''Gypsies Are Found Near Heaven'' (, lit. "The Gypsy camp goes to heaven"; also known as ''Queen of the Gypsies'') is a 1975 Soviet Union, Soviet Romantic film, romantic Drama film, drama film by Emil Loteanu, loosely based on short stories "Makar ...

'' - "Mustalaisleiri muuttaa taivaaseen'', Lappeenranta City Theatre, Finland 1997. *''Spring is coming'' - ''Kevät saapuu'',

Finlandia Hall The Finlandia Hall is a congress and event venue in the centre of Helsinki on the Töölönlahti Bay, owned by the City of Helsinki. The building, which was designed by architect Alvar Aalto, was completed in 1971. Every detail in the building i ...

1995.

Productions

*''Tid och Energi'', Martinus Concert Hall Vantaa, Finland 2008, Promenadisali Concert Hall, Pori Finland 2011. *''Tuulen poika'', Helsinki 2007, Arabia Primary School, Helsinki 2013 *''Apinakuningas Hanuman'', Keinutie Primary School, Helsinki 2006. *''Zum Zum Zananana'', EU Urban II -project 2005. *''Tiikeri tanssii'' ("The Tiger is Dancing"), Dance Theatre Raatikko, Finland 2003. *''Pikkubussilla alkuräjähdyksestä atomiaikaan'',

Ateneum Ateneum is an art museum in Helsinki, Finland and one of the three museums forming the Finnish National Gallery. It is located in the centre of Helsinki on the south side of Rautatientori square close to Helsinki Central railway station. It has ...

, Helsinki 1996 (a co-production with Finnish actress Emilia Pokkinen). *''Ilveilijän testamentti'', Ylioppilasteatteri (Helsinki Student's theatre) 1992. *Theatre of Eternal Values: ''Eternity in an Hour'',

Helsinki Festival The Helsinki Festival (in Finnish language, Finnish: Helsingin juhlaviikot, in Swedish language, Swedish: Helsingfors festspel) is the largest multi-arts festival in Finland. It is Finland's biggest cultural event in terms of visitors. In 2015, arou ...

2008, Tour in Italy

2009, Swiss tour

, 2009

New York Fringe Festival The New York International Fringe Festival, or FringeNYC, was a fringe theater festival and one of the largest multi-arts events in North America. It took place over the course of a few weeks in October, spread on more than 20 stages across sev ...

2010,

Theater Basel Theater Basel is the municipal theatre of the city of Basel, Switzerland, which is home to the city's opera and ballet companies. The theatre also presents plays and musicals in addition to operas and operettas. Because the theatre does not h ...

2010, Touring Turkish National Theatres in

and

Bursa Bursa () is a city in northwestern Turkey and the administrative center of Bursa Province. The fourth-most populous city in Turkey and second-most populous in the Marmara Region, Bursa is one of the industrial centers of the country. Most of ...

2011. *Theatre of Eternal Values: ''

William Blake William Blake (28 November 1757 – 12 August 1827) was an English poet, painter, and printmaker. Largely unrecognised during his life, Blake has become a seminal figure in the history of the Romantic poetry, poetry and visual art of the Roma ...

's Divine Humanity'', New Player's Theatre, West End,

, 2007. *

: ''Paalu'', 1994. *Ylioppilasteatteri: ''Ilveilijän testamentti'', 1992. *Ylioppilasteatteri: ''Vanja-eno'', 1992. *: ''Sudenhetki'', Helsinki 1990.Q-teatteri-performances
*

: '' Kullervo´s Story'', 1989. *Ylioppilasteatteri: ''Zoo'', 1989. *

: ''

Kalevala The ''Kalevala'' () is a 19th-century compilation of epic poetry, compiled by Elias Lönnrot from Karelian and Finnish oral folklore and mythology, telling a story about the Creation of the Earth, describing the controversies and retaliatory ...

'', 1985.

Sources

Helsinki City Theatre, list of performances
(also

an

Milliyet-newpper blog 2011, Turkey
(also

Zaman-newspaper, Turkey
(also

https://web.archive.org/web/20131015062206/http://www.zaman.com.tr/cuma_sahnede-blake-var_1129285.html])
Bursakultur, Türkiye
(also

https://archive.today/20130425071019/http://bursakultur.com/gp/2011/bir-saat-icinde-sonsuzluk/])
Bugünbugece Istanbulbiggistanbul kültür
(also

Theater Basel

The Happiest Medium theatre review, New York
(also

New York Theatre Review
(also

The FringeNYC festivalThe FringeNYC festival program 2010
(also

and

TEV-theatre at New York Fringe festival
(also

Eternity in an Hour
(also

Biography in English (TEV Members)
(also

- as cultural coordinator in Helsinki
als

Artova.fi
(als

Tuulen Poika -performances in Arabia
also

Art Coordinator´s blog
(also

Kopiosto (CV)Danceinfo
(also

London Theatre DatabaseIndielondon
(also
webcitation.org

The Stage listings - UK
(als

This is London, reviewsHelsinki Student´s theatre (Ylioppilasteatteri)City of Pori NewsSatakunnan taidetoimikunta, läänintaiteilijat - Regional artists of Satakunta, Finland

Taiteen edistämiskeskus - Arts Council of Finland
(also

Taiteen Edistämiskeskus - Arts Council of Finland - "Ilon ja Valon Satakunta" -festival
(also

Ilon ja valon satakunta
(also

Ilon ja Valon viikolle vauhdikas alku - Uusi aika -newspaper 11.3.2010, also

Iloa ja Valoa tänä vuonna lasten silmin - Satakunnan kansa -newspaper 2010)
Q-teatteri history
(also

Dance Theatre Raatikko performances during 2000´s
(also

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Merisalo, Marja 1965 births Living people Finnish choreographers Finnish directors Finnish female dancers Finnish theatre directors Finnish women choreographers Finnish women theatre directors Contemporary dancers 21st-century Finnish women artists 20th-century Finnish women artists