Puppet Pageant to host performances at corn feed, Finn Creek Festival this weekend

By Tucker Henderson

Reporter

As the annual Puppet Pageant is performed at the corn feed and Finn Creek Festival this coming weekend, Adam Tervola Hultberg returns as the voice of Vainomoinen, a major character in the play. A part, that he has played for a number of years.  ¶  “I believe I have been doing it for eight or nine years now,” said Tervola Hultberg. “I believe the first year we did it as a small group choir of about five or six community members from a couple churches. That was kind of how we became familiar with the ‘kilpalaulu,’ which is just part of the title of the ancient tune that goes with the Kalevala runes. There are some hundred runes that would actually fit the tune, so a person could go on for hours singing that melody.”  ¶  The Puppet Pageant’s story changes every year, however, it is all loosely based on the Finnish national epic, the Kalevala, which tells the tale of Vainomoinen and other mythical characters from ancient Finland.  ¶  “It seems to be a nice combination to do it at Finn Creek,” Tervola Hultberg said. “It kinda serves both purposes both for the town and the Finnish American community. It’s associated with the Finnish Kalevala, it’s not a literal translation of the full stories.”

“This year’s story is about Vainomoinen and the Golden Goose,” he continued. “It was done four years ago, but there’s a few puppet changes this year. (The Pageant) has been done enough years that sometimes stories get doubled up a little bit, but now so often that the kids experience the same story every year. The kids involved this year most likely didn’t do this one.”

This year, about a dozen local youth are participating in the event, including Tervola Hultberg’s daughter and son. They are working on making costumes, performing their lines, and learning about stage performances.

“They are doing it for the fourth time,” said Tervola Hultberg about his children. “It is a highlight for them, it’s one of their favorite things all year. It’s the kids actually involved, making the puppets for themselves, that they will be holding. It’s masks, puppets on sticks, and even partial costumes. Watching them be artistically involved in the whole process is pretty cool.”

“I’ve learned to enjoy the artistic concept behind the puppets,” he continued. “Watching the story being introduced at the beginning of the week and seeing how the children and directors are involved in creating these pieces or props pretty much by cardboard or paper mache and then seeing the process through.”

The directors, musicians, and performers make the pageant come to life on the stage, but it’s Tervola Hultberg that gives a voice to Vainomoinen and his songs to complete the artistic vision of the creators of the story each year. Each member of the performance is vital to make the show a success.

“Seeing it all come together in the last three days, when the musicians show up and the singers show up and the narrator can narrate,” said Tervola Hultberg, “At that point the kids know what to do, so the last three days, it’s exciting to see the final product come together.”

“That’s like with any theater pieces, you work the separate parts for a long time and then you put it together to see if it actually works,” he laughed. “You always hope that it actually works but you have to be flexible enough to make changes along the way.”