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ABOUT SISUS
Sisus is an all-female contemporary circus company from Finland. Originally it was founded by five childhood friends who met at youth circus, grew up together sharing their lives both on and off stage and most importantly were unified by a great sense of humour. Throughout the years the company has grown and more members have joined (and been born into) the Sisus family, as the motto of the company goes 'More is more' With Sisus the dream of an own circus company has become reality. Since 2014 they have done several projects as a company, and in August 2016 they premiered their first full length out door show Mosh Split. Currently Sisus is creating two new shows 'Split in two' and 'All this and 10.000 Heartbeats'. |
FAMILY MEMBERS OF SISUS
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IIDA SIPILÄ Disciplines: swinging trapeze, floor acrobatics, pyramids, skipping rope About Iida: "Iida, or Iitu as most people call her, loves the heights and excitement. After graduating from Lahti circus school she continued her studies in the Netherlands, graduating with a bachelors degree in Arts. Iitu is open minded and a bit of an anarchist. She loves meeting new people, and the doors of her van are always open for friends, guests or hitch-hikers. Iitu is also the founder of the embarrassment club, that is all about self-humiliation, the club has been completing embarrassing tasks since 2000. We should all learn not to take ourselves too serious, right?" |
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INKA PEHKONEN Disciplines: Washington trapeze, handstand, vertical rope, pyramids, skipping rope About Inka: "Most of her day she spends upside down. Standing on her head or hands, on the floor or on the Washington trapeze. Inka is a hard worker, with a great Yes!-attitude, that motivates also the people around her. She has a sparkling flirtatious character on and off stage. Inka is also the most musical one from Sisus, and she plays the traditional Finnish instrument called Kantele. This is the very powerful instrument that the famous Finnish national hero, Mr. Väinämöinen used to sink his rival, Mr. Joukahainen into the swamp!" |
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MILLA LAHTINEN Disciplines: Hand to hand, swinging trapeze, aerial hoop, pyramids, skipping rope About Milla "Milla is an acrobat on the ground and in the air. She´s specialized in hand-to -hand and swinging trapeze and performs also on the aerial hoop. Her sense of rhythm is unfailing, both on stage and when she´s hitting the dance floor in the after party. She’s easy to approach, and when she opens her mouth you´ll be blown away by her amazing baby-voice. Probably she will also have some left over from the ice cream she just ate on her shirt. Milla is a loyal friend, trustworthy and always caring for the ones near to her. It´s easy to fire her up, Milla is always ready for new challenges and adventures" |
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ROSA TYYSKÄ Disciplines: Cyr-wheel, handstand, vertical rope, pyramids, skipping rope About Rosa: "Rosa is specialized in Cyr-wheel. Like all Sisus members she started circus at a young age in the youth circus. She continued to Lahti circus school, where she discovered her passion for the spinning wheel. After graduating she has been performing all over Europe with her solo act. She may have an innocent or shy looking cover, but under that she has the most rancid sense of humor. Rosa is the most introvert person of the group. Traveling through Europe in a camper van, with five sweaty circus girls, who haven´t showered for a week, can be hard for her (which is quite strange for the rest of us). But during out years together, we've learned, that if we give her five minutes time on her own every now and then, she remains co-operative!" |
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SOFIA DEFOUR Disciplines: Hand to hand, Chinese pole, pyramids, skipping rope About Sofia: "These flexible legs don´t go unnoticed. Sofia has attitude, and when she is on stage, you can see that she throws herself 100% in it, and loves it. She doesn´t take herself too serious, and when her diva character gets going on stage, it doesn´t leave anyone cold. Her main disciplines are hand to hand (ass to face, as they call it) with Milla and Chinese pole. Off the stage she is the mother character of Sisus, cooking the most delicious meals from basically anything there is, making breakfast and dinner for the rest of Sisus almost every day. When Sofia decides something she´s really determined, going for her dreams and making things happen." |
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NELLI KUJANSIVU Disciplines: foot juggling, pyramids, skipping rope About Nelli: Like all Sisus girls, Nelli spent her whole childhood at a youth circus. After many years at Sorin Sirkus she headed towards Stockholm to study at the University of Dance and Circus (DOCH) and graduated from there 2016. Since then she has been working around the world with her solo act as well as part of shows like "Mad in Finland". She is also one of the founding members of contemporary circus companies called Sirkum Polaris and CIRC6. This small blonde girl is often considered sweet, innocent and girly at a first glance. When you get to know her you'll most often see here holding a beer, burping, being sarcastic and laughing a lot. Her friends are often calling her the 'chicken mommy' or 'the pharmacy' who always takes care of the people close to her. Nelli filled in for Rosa Tyyskä on tour 2018.' |
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HEIDI LATVA Disciplines: Dance trapeze, straps, aerial chains, roller skating About Heidi: This funny, energetic woman has traveled mostly in big top circuses all around Europe with her act since 2014. In her free time, she loves pumping iron, walking through nature in a peaceful bliss, and finding new ways to center the body, and mind through pilates or yoga exercises. When’s she’s not busy skating or swing audiences in the air, you’ll find her doing contemporary dancing while improvising and creating new choreographies. It is sometimes hard for her to just stay still, and usually she chooses the floor rather than a comfy sofa which can confuse people a lot. ESTER VILJANEN Disciplines: Swinging trapeze, skipping rope, About Ester: Ester is specialized in Swinging trapeze and mimical body isolation. She is extremely musical and besides being an enchanting singer she plays instruments such as cello and piano. Ester graduated from Lahti Circus School in 2017 and since then she has been touring with tent circuses such as Sirkus Finlandia and Circus Olympia. Her speciality as a solo performer is her unique act Singing trapeze where she sings at the same time as doing crazy tricks on a Swinging trapeze! Ester gives balance and sensibility to the wild zoo of Sisus where everyone shares their tooth brushes and sometimes underwear. That's where Ester definitely draws the line! (or actually way before..) PIPSA ILPALA Disciplines: Foot juggling, skipping rope, pyramids, good jokes About Pipsa: Pipsa and her quickly flicking "chickenlegs" have travelled around Europe with traditional circus and circus festivals. She has also been performing with Cirque Du Soleil and training with the Raw Art project. Most of the time you will find her juggling, eating or telling a story about someone who said or did something stupid. Pipsa has a goofy but very determined character who loves to do everything 300%. The stage is her happy place and she thinks the most important skill in life is the ability to laugh at yourself. Pipsa comes from the same youth circus as the Sisus originales and has been a fan of Sisus and bad evergreen Finnish music since the year one. ENNI-MARIA LYMI
Disciplines: Static Trapeze (Can also stand on her hands a tiny bit and occasionally pushes her static trapeze into a swing) About Enni: Enni's circus journey started 15 years ago in Helsinki in a small youth circus, which became her home and safety. Since graduating from DOCH in 2016 Enni has been touring around the world with her own circus company called FAUNA circus and has also been part of other circus companies and projects. Enni loves being on stage, loves to complain how painful her discipline is, the play and beauty of improvisation, the life of a unrooted, hectic, social, loving circus stravaganza. She appreciates all the different cultures and people she gets to meet. But as a true Finn she also loves the quiet and sometimes struggles with small talk. Don't be scared of her stern Finnish face, she is actually funny, kind and understanding. And also she is getting better at smalltalk. JENNY MANSIKKASALO
Disciplines: Directing, Aerial Silks, Guidance About Jenny: Jenny started her Circus life at the age of 8 at a youth circus in Lapland, Northern Finland. She was immediately fascinated by the circus school where there were fewer rules than in ballet (which she then quit). On the outside Jenny is very calm and sweet but on the inside there is a small anarchist, who loves political art and wants to smash the patriarchy. She also loves to write, endlessly browse Pinterest and fashion magazines, stretch and shake her body on ground as well as in the air. FARINA BERNDT Disciplines: Excel, Emails, Production About Farina: After Farina decided at the age of 10 that she will never become a professional juggler, she decided to work in the world of contemporary circus as a producer. Being the only one without a Finnish background in the company, she at least has a strong connection to Sweden, where she worked with Subcase and Subtopia several times. Her base is her really loved hometown Berlin, where she works with the Berlin Circus Festival since 2018. Being from Berlin, Farina surprisingly prefers dancing on 80s trash parties and drinking Aperol spritz instead of going to one of the 10.000s techno clubs in her city. Farina is always up to laugh and has a positive aura. |