Paavo Ruotsalainen has reached the end of his life. On his deathbed the lay preacher halluzinates and looks back onto his life. He relives memories of love and hardship with his wife Riitta including her untimely death after their son Juhana’s demise. He remembers how desperately he needed to follow his calling and how vehemently he tried fitting in with the clergy, who did not easily accept a simple man as a preacher. Has his calling been worth it? Will Paavo finally receive absolution and find his peace on his sacred island?
Joonas Kokkonen’s The Last Temptations is, if not the most important Finnish opera, then at least in the ranks of the most famous works. Premiered in 1975 at the Finnish national opera in Helsinki, The Last Temptations has been performed hundreds of times both in Finland and abroad. Kokkonen composed the part of Paavo for Finland’s number one bass Martti Talvela. This role has since been established as one of the big roles for Finnish basses. Now it’s Mika Kares‘ turn to take on Paavo, a performance that has been highly acclaimed with critics and the audience alike in the premiere of the new production in cooperation with Tampere Opera in March 2025.
Mikko Koukis direction focuses on the personal drama, that is unfolding on the canvas of Paavo’s rocky road to his beliefs. The relationship between Paavo, Riitta and Juhana is central, but also Paavo’s relation with his second wife Anna Loviisa and his other children. The stage design will fit like a glove into the castle Olavinlinna’s grand stage. Like Ita-Savo newspaper wrote: „One can only imagine how impressively this visually and musically high-level work, exploring life’s great questions, will resonate in the setting of Olavinlinna.”
