Samuli Emery has been selected as the festival’s new artistic director
Finnish-British choreographer, dance artist and educator Samuli Emery has been selected as the artistic director of the Kuopio Dance Festival. Their first festival will take place in summer 2027.
Emery is highly active across a wide range of dance contexts in Finland and internationally. Their work spans performing and creating works, teaching, curating, and leading and facilitating various artistic projects. They graduated from the prestigious SEAD Academy, majoring in choreography, and have also studied at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts.
Despite his young age, Helsinki-based Emery, 29, has worked extensively around the world and built broad international networks. They have collaborated with numerous renowned choreographers, including Meg Stuart, Jérôme Bel, Imre & Marne van Opstal, Christoph Winkler, Sonya Lindfors, and WAUHAUS, and has appeared in productions with some of Finland’s best-known artists, such as Jenni Vartiainen, Isac Elliot, Elastinen, Saara Aalto and Apulanta. Emery has received multiple awards for his achievements as a dance artist in Finland as well as in Germany, Poland, Estonia and Italy.
Boldness, accessibility and encounters at the core
Emery is very familiar on the Kuopio dance scene, both at the festival and in other contexts, working as a workshop leader, rehearsal director, performer and mentor. They share their thoughts on the festival and its future:
“Kuopio Dance Festival is, in terms of its longevity and visibility, a truly epic platform for encountering dance. Especially within a Finnish culture that often leans toward modesty, the festival’s ambition and boldness deserve to be nurtured and highlighted even more strongly in its profile and programme.”
In recent years, Emery has focused particularly on developing the structures, spaces, community and accessibility of the dance field — themes they are eager to continue exploring at the festival.
“I dream of broadening the festival’s participant base even further and of future programming choices that would draw more dance students and professionals to Kuopio. This would create an increasing number of exciting intersections between different audiences, professionals and amateurs, as well as Finnish and international artists,” they say.
“One of my most important tasks as Artistic Director and as a contextualiser of works is to help different target groups experience and process the content in ways that are accessible and meaningful to them. I approach this responsibility with humility, curiosity and enthusiasm.”
Emery also emphasises the importance of encounters:
“I see the future of the festival as an interactive whole in which artists, audiences, local operators and international guests together create encounters that could only happen at Kuopio Dance Festival. I want to develop the festival as a place where dance is experienced deeply and tangibly as a bodily event, but above all together, as part of something larger than ourselves.”
A fresh perspective and bridges to new generations
The festival’s board and executive director Salima Peippo note that a large number of high-quality applications for the position of artistic director were received from both Finland and abroad.
“It was wonderful to see that our festival is regarded as an interesting and important in the dance field. The selection was extremely difficult, and we placed particular emphasis on enthusiasm for new ideas and structures, as well as the ability to build bridges to a new generation of festival-goers — without forgetting our valued and loyal audience.”
“Over its long history, the festival has seen many interesting and creative phases. We believe that with Samuli we can create something that has not yet been seen at Kuopio Dance Festival. We are extremely happy to begin a new programming period under their leadership — they bring a fresh perspective and youthful energy to the festival.”
The term of the artistic director is two years, after which it may be extended by up to three additional one-year options, decided annually.
Previous Artistic Directors, in addition to the current artistic director Kenneth Kvarnström, include Riku Lehtopolku, Jorma Uotinen, Alpo Pakarinen, Jukka O. Miettinen and Doris Laine.