Other events – Helsinki Poetry Connection

Konepaja Spoken Word #2: TURNING POINTS

28. 02. 2026

Konepaja Spoken Word: TURNING POINTS
March 21, 2026

Konepaja Spoken Word is a new English-language open stage and international community for spoken word, poetry, and performance.

The second edition is organized by Helsinki Poetry Connection in collaboration with Kino Konepaja and Catalysti Association of Transcultural Artists, and produced by Vinski Valos.

This open stage welcomes poets, performers, storytellers, and experimental voices working with text, voice, movement, sound, and presence. Whether your work leans toward poetry, performance art, short fiction, monologue, or something in between or beyond, this is a space to try out new material, share ongoing processes, and connect with others working with language and performance in Helsinki.

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Following the success of the Konepaja Spoken Word, we are returning with a full Spring 2026 season! Save the dates:

March 21 (Theme: TURNING POINTS)
April 11 (Theme: TBA)
May 9 (Theme: TBA)

THEME: TURNING POINTS
Decisive moments at which a significant changes occur or decisions must be made.

You do not have to follow the theme strictly. It’s a prompt for those who choose.

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The evenings are open to both first-time performers and experienced artists. Come to perform, listen, and be part of a growing community. The focus is on sharing, experimentation, risk-taking, and live encounters. We would love to hear your words, whether carefully crafted or spontaneous. Please reserve a spot in advance and bring your creative piece to life.

(or on site, schedule permitting)

The events are held in English, but all languages are welcome on stage.

5 minutes per performance
Free admission

Sign-up: 7 PM
Start: 7:30 PM
Afterparty: 10 PM to midnight

Location: Kino Konepaja
Konepajanpasaasi
Vallila, 00510 Helsinki

Everyone is welcome.

Konepaja Spoken Word #1: BEGINNINGS

08. 01. 202608. 01. 2026

A brand-new English-language open stage and international community for spoken word, poetry, and performance, organized by Helsinki Poetry Connection and Kino Konepaja.

This open stage welcomes poets, performers, storytellers, and experimental voices working with text, voice, movement, sound, and presence. Whether your work leans toward poetry, performance art, short fiction, monologue, or something in between and beyond, this is a space to try out material, share ongoing processes, and meet others working with language and performance in Helsinki.

Theme: BEGINNINGS
– the beginning of a plot line or an era
– the phenomenology and cultural history of New Year’s resolutions
– the first morning after deciding something important

You don’t strictly have to follow the theme, it’s to provide a prompt for those who choose.

The first edition of Konepaja Spoken Word is produced by Vinski Valos and will be hosted by bilingual poet, translator, and HPC veteran Kasper Salonen.

The evening is open to both first-time performers and experienced artists. Come to perform, listen, and be part of a new community.

We focus on sharing, experimentation, risk-taking, and live encounters. We would love to hear your words, no matter how brief or random, so please contact us to grab a spot and bring your creative piece to life.
Sign-ups in advance via this link, or on site. The event is held in English, but all languages are welcome on stage.

5 minutes per performance
Admission is free

Location: KINO KONEPAJA,
Konepajanpasaasi,
Vallila, 00510 Helsinki
Everyone is welcome.

Organized by Helsinki Poetry Connection ry in collaboration with Kino Konepaja.

Pikkujoulu

11. 11. 202511. 11. 2025

A warm welcome to spend an evening in poetic company, as HPC organizes a relaxed and creative Christmas party on November 29, 2025 starting at 6 pm! The venue is the Permantosali of Tekstin talo.

The event is open to everyone interested in HPC’s activities, so you can come alone or together, in wool socks, high heels, your outfit is free. The most important thing is to feel relaxed together.

During the evening, we will have:

poetry predictions for the future

poetry card making

surprise performers and performances

drinks from the bar

relaxed hanging out and inspiring company

The program and schedule are still being finalized — but we are sure to have an atmospheric and creative Christmas party.

Location: Tekstin talo, 1st floor Ground Floor Hall, Lintulahdenkatu 3

Time: Sat. 29.11. at 6 pm →

Free admission!

Would you like to support HPC’s activities? You can become a member on the spot or https://www.helsinkipoetryconnection.fi/en/join-us/

In addition, HPC t-shirts and books will be sold at discounted prices!

AMOS REX OPEN MIC

21. 05. 202521. 05. 2025

Youth Open Mic, Helsinki Poetry Connection and Amos Rex invite you to an enchanting poetry night in June where you can be the star.

We are organising a wonderful, challenging and diverse evening of poetry at Amos Rex, where you are invited to join us on Tuesday evening 17 June at 18:00.

There will be intriguing poetry performances and an open mic, for which you will find the registration link here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScTXOLh2vouuU983vabKj6pIFx5SifTP-2JgI4hKs1arU32Yw/viewform

The poet guests for this evening will be spoken word legend Elsa Tölli from Helsinki, charismatic young poet Kuisma from Turku and Sámi writer, dramaturg and curator Aarni Pieski.

We will meet in the museum shop upstairs at Amos Rex, overlooking the hustle and bustle of the city centre. The space is accessible. For detailed accessibility information check Amos Rex’s website.

In the open mic you can perform a wide variety of text: poetry, rap, lyrics, poetry performance, spoken word, topical speeches… as long as the text is your own. We encourage everyone who comes to the microphone, whether you are a first-timer or a seasoned poetry performer. Time at the open mic will be considered on a pre-registration basis, but you can expect a maximum of 10 minutes.

The event will follow the museum’s Safer Space Policy. A Youth Open Mic harassment liaison person will also be present. The event is free of charge, and we will do our best to make you feel welcome and encouraged. The event is also alcohol-free.

You are welcome to come to the event just to vibe, listen and cheer others on. Open mic is respectful of each other, wild, spontaneous and without barriers. Come witness – and be part of – the most beautiful poetry night!

POETRY HANG OUT

19. 03. 2025

Join us for a relaxed evening of culture, creativity and community at HPC’s Poetry Hang Out on April 4th, starting at 5 PM!

We’re cozying up in Tekstin talo’s shared living room, Bar Tÿpo for laid-back socializing, easy programming, and inspiring chats about literature and spoken word. The bar will be serving up drinks, and you’re welcome to bring a poem or a piece you’d love to share with your table.

Expect to connect with fellow HPC folks and board members and creatives from the worlds of literature, arts, event production, and performance. It’s the perfect moment to spark new ideas and help shape Helsinki’s cultural scene.

Bonus: 20% off at the bar until 7 PM!

To support HPC, you can join as a member during the evening or join us here

Your host for the night: HPC’s very own chair of the board, Vinski Valos.

Tekstin talo, Bar Tÿpo, Lintulahdenkatu 3

Poet’s reception at Tekstin talo!

12. 01. 2025

Poet’s reception 23.1.2025 5-7 p.m. at Bar Tÿpo Tekstin talo!

Helsinki Poetry Connection’s Vinski Valos is a typewriting on-the-spot bespoke poet and listener. He receives people at his table and writes a personal takeout poem based on each encounter. Sit down and experience the process. Do you have a topic, question, passion, or experience in mind you would like to see verbalized? The finished piece, typed, signed, and recited, is yours to keep.

Valos has been gigging with his typewriter since 2016 at various events, festivals and happenings in Berlin, Helsinki and beyond, as well as put together a book of poetry from his encounters.

https://www.instagram.com/sidewalkscribe/

https://www.vinskivalos.com/

Action & Rest – Spoken Word with HPC

08. 10. 2024

As a departure from reading drama, Helsinki Poetry Connection presents an engaging serving of live stage poetry with two dazzling performers: Tania Nathan and Aika Huusko.

Tania Nathan is a post-colonial artist working in themes of identity, memory, joy and rest. She is based in Helsinki and Malaysia and through spoken word and short stories puts forward the idea of queer and BIPOC joy as the ultimate form of rebellion. Right now, she is curious about radical rest, and other forms of resistance.

Aika Huusko is a poet, an artivist and a translator, whose poetry is a mix of metaphysical and socially engaged themes. In 2012 they graduated with MA in writing poetry from Kingston University Writing School and their publications include Freshman mother (KWS, 2012), DIRT (Andel, 2015), Liike olen (Haaras, 2022) and Colombian nadaism poetry anthology Kerrostalo sateessa (Aviador, 2022). Aika has produced and performed at various spoken word events in London, Bogotá and Helsinki. They´re also a long-standing board member of Helsinki Poetry Connection.

Helsinki Poetry Connection is an award-winning association of writers, producers and cultural activists that promotes live poetry, spoken word, and open mic culture in Finland and abroad.

The festival is free of charge but requires reservation! Link!

18.10. – 20.00

Post Theatre Collective Studio

Pengerkatu 11 a 3 Helsinki

Graphic: Amirali Ghasemi

Rondo Open Mic 9.12.

24. 11. 202324. 11. 2023

9.12.2023, 19-22, Rondo Beer House, Vouti Björnramin kuja 6, 00790 Helsinki

Rondo Open Mic invites all friends of poetry to a new club in the heart of Viikki! Welcome to a club filled with lyricists, the mic is warmed up by Raakasaga and Yavis. Be your style spoken or written word, rap, street poetry or something totally else, from this club you will find a place for it and yourself.

The open mic starts after the warm-up shows. You can perform your poetry, rap, song lyrics, thoughts, a joke — the most important thing is that it is written by you. Each performer has 5 minutes on stage. It is possible to play i.e. beats on the background from phone or other device. We book a few open mic spots in advance, send email to juhokuusi@hotmail.com (put “Rondo Open Mic” in the header) and you can of course register at the spot to the hosts during the event.

The event is produced and hosted by Saartu Gada and Juho Kuusi.

Our event adheres to Safer Space Guidelines as found on HPC’s website: https://www.helsinkipoetryconnection.fi/en/about-us/safer-space-guidelines-of-hpc/ We don’t tolerate any kind of hate speech or discrimination.

The age limit is 18. Free entry.

Nordic Slam Poetry Night for Youth

27. 08. 202330. 08. 2023

Helsinki Poetry Connection offers a unique opportunity to see Poetry Slam masters from Nordic countries. As connected to Nordic Slam championships, at Friday 15th of September, there will be an event for Youth at Oranssi (Kaasutehtaankatu 1).

Champions from four countries will perform with Icelandic DJ Beatur, who will create background sound for poems. It can be anything from apocalyptic circus music to summery forest sounds.

Poetry Slam champions are Lasse Nyholm Jensen from Denmark, Marija Bliznac from Norway, Olle Sundström from Sweden and Jarkko Jokinen from Finland. There will be surprise poets performing with Poetry Slam champions. The event will be hosted by Juho Kuusi, who has won Finland’s Poetry Slam not once, but twice.

English translations of all poems will be screened to the background, so you don’t miss anything if you don’t understand the language.

We adhere to safer space guidelines, and we expect our audience to do same. Please note that the event is alcohol-free. Read more about safer space guidelines at our website: https://www.helsinkipoetryconnection.fi/en/about-us/safer-space-guidelines-of-hpc/

Oranssi is accessible except some doors with 3 cm doorsteps, but there is step-free access to the venue. One of the toilets is accessible and all are gender-neutral. Don’t hesitate to contact us for further info.

Producers: Juho Kuusi, Samppa Varis ja Elina Ortamo
Visual layout: Anna Nuutinen
Helsinki Poetry Connection with Finnish Cultural Foundation

The event is free, you are warmly welcome!

Nordic Slam Championships

03. 08. 202316. 09. 2023

Helsinki Poetry Connection hosts The Nordic Slam Championships in Helsinki, at Tiivistämö on Saturday 16th of September at 7 p.m. – welcome! Event is free.

First time in Finland, there will be an international Poetry Slam Championship. Champions from Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Finland will challenge each other!

Nordic Slam has been organized since 2016, most recently 2022 at Lillehammer, Norway. In 2019, Grumpy Bitch (Nihkee Akka) aka Jonna Nummela won first place. Now it is Finland’s turn to host the event. Come to observe the versatility of the Nordic poetry scene and see who will win the championship this time! A rare opportunity indeed!

There are some differences in rules as opposed to other international championships. There are three rounds during which every participant will perform. At the end all the points from the 3 rounds will be added together. The winner will be the one with the highest score. All poems will be translated into English and screened to the background.

At the moment we are looking for five judges. You don’t need to understand the Nordic languages – you just need to be a friend of poetry! Sign up to Juho Kuusi via email: juhokuusi@hotmail.com

There will be competitors from all the Nordic countries except Iceland, as there is currently no active Icelandic Poetry Slam culture. Icelandic beatboxer and DJ Beatur will kick off the evening. Our hosts are poets Harri Hertell and Rosanna Fellman.

The event will be streamed and photographed. We adhere to safer space guidelines which can be read at our website: https://www.helsinkipoetryconnection.fi/en/about-us/safer-space-guidelines-of-hpc/

You can watch livestream here or at Youtube.

Day before the event, on Friday 15th of September there will be an event for Youth at Oranssi (Kaasutehtaankatu 1).

Producers: Juho Kuusi, Samppa Varis ja Elina Ortamo

Visual layout: Anna Nuutinen

Helsinki Poetry Connection with Finnish Cultural Foundation

Almost all of the spaces in Tiivistämö are accessible, with the exception of the downstairs. The event will be upstairs, where there is an accessible toilet. Read more at Tiivistämö’s site:

https://tiivistamo.fi/en/what-is-tiivistamo/accessibility