Jukka Kajava

Jukka Kajava

Jukka Ilmari Kajava (February 25, 1943, Oulu – May 16, 2005, Berlin) was one of the most well known Finnish theatre and television critics.[1]

Kajava worked for Helsingin Sanomat beginning in 1967, joining the paper's permanent staff in 1978. In addition to reviewing and criticizing, Kajava also directed theater and musical theater.[2] The first production he directed was the operetta Iloinen Leski (Merry Widow), collaborating with Antti Einari Halonen, for the Åbo Svenska Teater in 1972. Kajava was also known as a spokesperson for quality culture for children and received a State Award for Children's Culture in the year 1985. He received the State Award for Critics in 1992.

Kajava was a critic held in esteem by many, whose reviews could notoriously consign a mediocre performance to total oblivion, but who often highlighted new and notable performances and performers from the Finnish general theatrical scene.[3]

References

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  1. ^ Hellman, Heikki (2018). "Kajava, Jukka (1943–2005)". Kansallisbiografia (in Finnish). Retrieved 2022-05-07.
  2. ^ Koski, Pirkko (2022). Finland's National Theatre 1974–1991: The Two Decades of Generational Contests, Cultural Upheavals, and International Cold War Politics. Routledge. ISBN 978-0-367-47689-2.
  3. ^ Kajava, Jukka at Uppslagsverket Finland (in Swedish).