Artistic productions at the Theatre Academy

Published 10.3.2023 | Updated 28.4.2026

Artistic productions at Uniarts Helsinki’s Theatre Academy are part of teaching on all educational levels: on the bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral level. For the most part, artistic productions are carried out with support from the services for artistic work in the Theatre Academy’s facilities and in partner theatres or with other collaboration partners. The Theatre Academy’s programme features 30-50 productions and about 200 performances every year.

Production planning for the academic year

Performances are part of education and research. Initial decisions on performances are made by the staff of the relevant degree programme or the Performing Arts Research Centre (Tutke). The highest decision-making body to decide on performances is the teaching council, which approves the Theatre Academy’s productions and support service resources for each academic year.

In the production planning for the academic year, priority is given to mandatory productions that are included in studies in accordance with the curricula.

Production resources are prioritised according to following criteria 

Artistic and pedagogical content that is mandatory in the curriculum

The resources for these productions are considered for the entire curriculum period and are announced annually in the production call.

Artistic theses that require space and support services from the Theatre academy

Priority is given to the artistic theses of master’s students in directing and choreography in TeaK’s performance spaces. For other students participating in these productions, the production does not need to be a thesis.

Productions accepted for the Theater hall production space must have a lighting and sound designer in the working group due to the technical challenging space.

If the Theatre Academy’s 6-week production spaces remain available after this, other students working on their theses may also apply for a production space. In these applications, priority will be given to productions involving several thesis works from different degree programs.

These priorities are in effect every year. If there are still production spaces left after applying these criteria, resources may also be allocated to projects other than theses.

LAPS students theses works are divided into three weeks of production time in three performance spaces (not in the Theater Hall) during odd-numbered springs. LAPS students can also apply for a production space in the facilities of partners negotiated by the degree program. No other theses works need to be completed in these productions. If an artistic thesis is not completed in an odd-numbered spring, its resourcing will be negotiated with the program director. Resourcing cannot exceed the support received by other LAPS students.

CDPR students’ theses works share a three-week production period in one performance space (not the Theater Hall) in odd-numbered springs. CDPR students can also apply for a production space at the facilities of partners negotiated by the study program. No other theses works need to be completed in these productions.
If an artistic thesis is not completed in an odd-numbered spring, its resources will be negotiated with the program director. Resources cannot exceed the support received by other CDPR students.

The artistic part of the research can only be carried out at the Theatre Academy’s 6-week production space through the production call outside of odd-numbered springs, mainly during periods 1, 3, and 4.

Productions (theses, artistic parts of research, and other productions) carried out in collaboration with a partner.

Schedules and support resources are agreed upon in a collaboration agreement, and productions are carried out primarily using the partner’s production and technical resources. Production services are involved in advance planning and agreement. Productions are brought to the attention of the production call.

Productions and events outside of the curricula are allocated resources on a seasonal basis, if possible. 

Schedule for production planning 

April:

• Confirming all the obligatory productions lead by the study programmes for the next calendar year.

May:

• The application period for the next calendar year is open for artistic thesis projects and research projects with artistic components as well as for event, seminar and conference activities.

August:

• Going through all the artistic activities, events, and conferences/seminars at the Theatre Academy’s Joint Planning Seminar.

September:

• The Teaching Council makes the decisions on the artistic activities and events, and their resources for the next calendar year. Decisions will be informed to all applicants.

Resource guidelines

The Resource guidelines describe the support services that are available for all productions and events. It is important that all students, teachers and other staff members who are planning artistic activities and other events read the Resource guidelines before production begins.

Who can par­tic­i­pate in the the­atre acad­e­my’s pro­duc­tions

For the most part, productions at Uniarts Helsinki’s Theatre Academy are created by the academy’s students and permanent staff. Participation in productions is part of students’ studies, and no remuneration is paid. Production teams can also have members from outside of the student community and permanent staff of the Theatre Academy. 

Students of other academies at Uniarts Helsinki 

Students of the Academy of Fine Arts and the Sibelius Academy: 

• Students are compensated for their participation through ECTS credits for studies included in their degree. The student must agree upon their participation with their own professor or study advisor. No remuneration is paid for participation.  
• The number of awarded credits is defined by the student’s home academy with consideration to the duties, duration and scope connected to the participation. Credits are awarded by the student’s home academy after the production is over.   
• The student must have a discussion at their home academy about the supervision and teaching that they will receive in connection with their duties. The student’s home academy is responsible for the expenses caused by providing this supervision and teaching. 

Students of another school or higher education institution

Other schools and higher education institutions 

• Students are compensated for their participation through ECTS credits for studies. Participation is agreed upon between the participating student and their coordinating teacher or study advisor. No remuneration is paid for participation. 
• The number of awarded credits is defined by the student’s home institution with consideration to the duties, duration and scope connected to the participation. Credits are awarded by the student’s school after the production is over.   
• The student has a discussion at their home institution about the supervision and teaching that they will receive in connection with their duties. The student’s home institution is responsible for the expenses caused by providing this supervision and teaching.  

Students of the Open University 

• Students can participate in productions and earn credits by attending a course at the Open University. No remuneration is paid for participation. 
• Students can participate in a production either based on an application process organised by the Open University or by taking part in a specifically designed and tailored study unit (a production) approved by the degree programmes responsible for the production. The study unit must be approved before the start of the planning period and/or training period of the production.    
• As a student, you will have to pay a course fee to the Open University, unless you have a continued right to study granted by the university. Course fees cannot be paid from the production budget or other funds of Uniarts Helsinki.   
• Supervision and teaching: the degree programmes agree upon the payment of expenses related to supervision and teaching, if the production is not part of the general course selection of the Open University.  

Volunteers

Non-professionals and those interested in the field as a hobby can participate in productions as volunteers.   

• No ECTS credits or other compensation is awarded to production participants. 
• Volunteering is not allowed in the person’s professional field of work. For example, a lighting designer who has completed a degree cannot volunteer in the role of a lighting designer in a production. 
• A person who works on the basis of an artist grant can volunteer in a production if they consider that the work they do is covered by the purpose of use of the grant.  
• Unemployed jobseekers cannot work as a volunteer in duties that fall under their own professional field. 
• Volunteers are insured by the university’s accident insurance. 

Professionals 

In this context, the word professionals refers to anyone who works in duties of their own professional field.  

Professionals can participate in productions as paid employees. Hiring of professionals is always agreed upon with the professor and planning officer of the degree programme in good time before the start of production. 

In employment matters, the university follows the General Collective Agreement for Universities as concerns positions that are covered by it. These positions include lighting, sound and costume designers, for example. As for other positions, the university follows the applicable parts of collective agreements related to the position in question.   

Remunerations are paid in accordance with Uniarts Helsinki’s remuneration guidelines.  

Work can be compensated based on a monthly salary, a remuneration or a commission agreement. The person can also invoice the artistic work that they have done (does not apply to teaching).  

Producers, planning officers of the degree programmes or coordinators are responsible for compiling employment contracts and fee arrangements. 

Persons who take part in a supported employment scheme offered by the Employment and Economic Development Offices  

• Work try-outs are agreed upon with the person completing the try-out and with the Theatre Academy and TE Office. The Theatre Academy is responsible for providing guidance and supervision for the person.   
• A work try-out is possible for example for a person working in technical duties for a specific period of time.   
• The person does not have an employment relationship with Uniarts Helsinki, and the person is not paid salary. 
• The Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment insures the person against occupational illnesses and accidents as well as damages caused to the organiser of the work try-out for the duration of the work try-out.

Performance facilities 

Kookos offers seven facilities suited for performances, along with the required equipment. These facilities include Theatre Hall and Studios 1-4 as well as halls 532 and 534. Only teaching course demos and other internal events of the academy are organised in other facilities.  

Theatre Academy productions and events can also be organised in the White Studio in Mylly and in facilities outside of the Sörnäinen campus. You can find information and images of our facilities on our external website. 

Performance-related communications  

Communications Planner Jaana Forsström is responsible for the communications related to performance activities. Information that is needed for communications is gathered each season with the event details form, which is sent to the working groups by the production coordinator. The following details are provided in the form so that they can be published in the event calendar of the website or in a Facebook event, for example: 

• Description of the performance and information about the working group 
• Performance dates and locations 
• Promotional image 

Information on other materials for events, such as posters and programme booklets, is available from the communications planner or the producer responsible for the performance in question. 

If working group decide to make a poster by themselves, poster templates are in Uniarts imagebank.

Ticket sales, invitations and free tickets  

Production Coordinator Rosa Sedita is responsible for ticket sales and performance invitations.

The production coordinator works in close cooperation with all working groups for performances concerning ticket sales for their productions. 

Copyrights 

Uniarts Helsinki signs an agreement with all new degree students where the student grants the university a parallel right to reproduce the work, performance or recording that is created as part of their studies and to make the work, performance or recording available to the public. 

Production storage and loans

Productions of Uniarts Helsinki’s Theatre Academy may be stored for a fixed period in the below-listed cases. The possibility of storage arrangements is agreed in production meetings and with the support service personnel for artistic work before the take-down of the production.

Storage arrangement can be made for a bachelor’s or master’s degree production if it has been defined as a touring production in the curriculum or the study unit involves performances outside of the Theatre Academy. 

Another curriculum-based production can be stored if the production has been invited to a festival or a venue before the production’s take-down. The working group must compile a technical rider on the production as a whole, with information on the storage needs, before the take-down. 

An MA production or an artistic component for doctoral degree

• The working group has a plan for carrying out a performance visit outside the Theatre Academy.
• During the production period at the Theatre Academy, the working group must present the following to the support service personnel for artistic work:
  • a plan for applying to be part of a programme of a theatre / performance venue/ festival etc. and a plan presenting acquired funding or a plan for applying for funding for the visit 
  • a technical rider on the production as a whole and information on what is needed from the Theatre Academy.  
• The working group must confirm the visit or request for extra storage time within 4 months of the take-down. If a visit has not been agreed upon within the due date, the set design, props and wardrobe are taken down and become available for the use of other productions. The storage period can be extended for a max. period of 1 year from the premiere. 

Please note that the Theatre Academy does not loan weapons, chandeliers or taxidermy for visits. In principle, technical aspects of a production are managed with the equipment of the venue where the visit takes place. Organising of warm-up rehearsals for productions at the Theatre Academy is always agreed upon on a case-by-case basis. Staff members of the Theatre Academy may participate in the visit but staff participation and related costs are always agreed upon separately. 

Loan principles for productions that have not been stored and when the student has already graduated 

Set, props and costume loans for visits are always agreed upon on a case-by-case basis if the student has already graduated. The departments only loan the same sets, props and costumes that were used in the original productions earlier performances. If the items are being used or stored by another production, the academy does not loan other items as substitutes. If students need to loan something, they can contact the department in question.

The Theatre Academy does not contribute to the payment of transport, material or salary expenses related to these visits or take care of the wardrobe or transport of items. Loans must be returned in good condition.  

Safety issues in artistic activities  

Taking safety into consideration is an integral part of the planning process for performances and also part of the learning of the student participating in the production. 

Sus­tain­able artis­tic work

Ecologically sustainable activities can be rehearsed with support at the Theatre Academy.  Consider what you want to try and learn about ecological sustainability during production.