From a very early age, I knew that performing was going to play a big part in my life. It’s no wonder then, that from age six onwards I spent my youth singing in several choirs, playing violin in various orchestras, taking classical singing and violin lessons, singing in bands and dancing everything from ballet to street jazz. Most of all, I loved acting and I enrolled into an acting class where I religiously spent three nights a week.
My first real brake came with The Muumi-Musical, in which I played one of the leads. Later on, I also got to play Snow White in a small theatre for a three week run. Inspired by these experiences, I applied to the Children’s Choir of the Finnish National Opera and was fortunate enough to get in. Four nights a week I would travel to our capital, Helsinki, to perform in various productions such as Tosca, Carmen and Boris Gonunov. This led into playing one of the ‘Three Boys’ in The Magic Flute which ended up going on tour around Finland and was performed for a stunning seven years in a row. I found all the performing on top of school quite overwhelming at times but somehow I always managed to find energy to perform. No wonder they called me the ’Duracell Bunny’!
After graduating from high school, I knew that if I wanted to succeed in Musical Theatre, I would have to get into the heart of the action and, luckily, I got a scholarship to attend the Guildford Conservatoire near London. The training there was excellent but very demanding and helped me prepare for what was to come. In a very competitive environment I feel very fortunate to have landed parts in amazing shows such as Starlight Express, Footloose and the wonderful Our House. Hopefully I will be able to work for years to come so I can learn more and improve my skill as I still have so much more to give.