6.3.2026

Do you need space to rehearse or develop you idea? Applications for the August 2025 residency period are now open.

The Theatre Museum is Finland’s national museum for performing arts (theatre, dance, opera, circus, performance) and is located at the Cable Factory in Helsinki. Each year, the Theatre Museum offers two space residencies for performing arts professionals or working groups. Residencies take place in January and August. Applications for the August 2026 residency period are now open.

The theme of the Theatre Museum’s exhibition in 2026 is the circus, so we hope to receive applications that are specifically related to the circus, but applicants from other fields will also be considered.

Please note that the space available is not suitable for all types of circus. For example, there are no attachment points for aerial acrobatics. Please familiarize yourself with the space in advance and ensure its suitability before applying!

We offer you and your project space, technical resources, and a supportive working community. During the residency period, you can rehearse your upcoming work and prepare, for example, a demo open to the public or some other activity that involves interaction with the audience.

The August 2026 residency runs from August 10–23., exact dates will be agreed upon with the selected artist/group. The space is the Theatre Museum’s Maneesi: a round area, partly walled and partly curtained, near the museum entrance.

If you have a project that needs rehearsal space, present your idea and send your application by April 12, 2026. We will announce the selection by the end of April.

Photo: In August 2025, Siiri Haatainen, Olga Kastemaa, and Pilvi Mäkeläinen prepared the work PULP at the Theatre Museum residence. Photo from the demo performance.

Theatre Museum space residency

When?

August 10–23, 2026

Who?

Performing arts professionals or small groups.

Museum employees are not eligible to apply.

What?

The museum provides the Maneesi space, rehearsal and performance time, technical equipment, project publicity, staff support, and a working community during the residency.

The museum expects audience-open or audience-interactive activities, such as open rehearsals, discussions, or workshops. A performance may be completed, but the residency can also aim for other outcomes. The residency will be communicated through the museum’s channels and documented in the museum archives in an agreed manner.

The art project must relate to one or more of the museum’s collection areas. We are particularly interested in circus arts projects for the August application round, but applications from other fields will also be considered. The residency takes place in museum premises, partly during opening hours, which may set limits on the type of project. As the same space is occasionally used for other activities, exact rehearsal times will be agreed upon together.

Space

Maneesi. Round, non-soundproof area with a semicircular fixed wall and a movable curtain wall. Floor: concrete. Area: 96 m².

Audience seating

Loose chairs

Technical equipment

Projection on fixed wall (width approx. 10 m). Max width 5264 px, height 1110 px. PA system, wireless microphones (Sennheiser xsw-65). Lighting: exhibition spots and LED fixtures, ETC Colour Source lighting desk.

How to apply?

Send a free-form application by email to tiedotus@teatterimuseo.fi. Attach an idea paper (max two pages) describing the project, how it fits the museum space, the expected outcome, and the type of audience interaction during the residency. Include your CV.

Deadline: April 12, 2026.

Inquiries: tiedotus@teatterimuseo.fi

**

The Theatre Museum’s residency program began in 2022. Each year, two artists or groups have taken over museum spaces and brought their projects to museum visitors:

2022: choreographer Favela Vera Ortiz and musician/beatboxer Venla Ilona Blom

2023: director/filmmaker Vilma Tihilä and dancer/choreographer Arttu Peltoniemi, plus Vilus.art group: Vilhelmiina Sinervo, Ines Kakkonen, and Mercedes Krapovickas

2024: KÖTT collective: Anni Kaila, Karoliina Loimaala, and Anna Stenberg, and performance/sound artist Juha Valkeapää

2025: Antero Kemppi and Jere Kolehmainen, and dance artists Siiri Haatainen, Olga Kastemaa and Pilvi Mäkeläinen

2026: Antero Kemppi and Jere Kolehmainen (exceptional completion of a project in another space residency)

You can read previous residency artists’ thoughts on the residency period in our blog posts:

Siiri Haatainen, Olga Kastemaa, Pilvi Mäkeläinen: PULP takes shape

Antero Kemppi and Jere Kolehmainen: Long Play