New Performance Turku Biennale is developing a unique Audience Ambassador training program as part of its international contemporary art event. The program offers residents of the Turku region an opportunity to serve as bridge-builders between performance art and local communities.
Audience Ambassadors are not traditional art guides, but cultural facilitators who create meaningful connections between art and diverse audience groups. They organize meetings, and creative moments that deepen the art experience and promote dialogue.
Pilot program 2025
The Audience Ambassador concept was piloted as part of the 2025 New Performance Turku Biennale. During an intensive training period in May, a group of art enthusiasts of diverse ages and backgrounds, selected through an open call, formed a team and received a 40-hour ambassador training designed and implemented by educator and researcher María Villa, NPT Curator of Engagement. The teaching focused on the knowledge, skills, and competencies required for effective facilitation of audience engagement. This included a dive into historical and current practices of performance art, tools for its interpretation, and becoming familiar with the basics of experiential learning.
As an important part of the preparation, the team also met professionals from ten art organizations in Turku that traditionally collaborate with NPT Biennale as partner venues or programming events. With them, ambassadors had the opportunity to understand the specifics of audience work in these venues, connect with different forms of contemporary art, and discover how to facilitate group dynamics with diverse communities, from the more specialized to broader publics.
After submitting their audience engagement proposals, a group of 14 ambassadors completing the training will receive certificates and implement their proposals in the New Performance Turku Biennale. The following participants took part in the training: Aya Ahmed, Jenna Alastalo, Salla Anttonen, Cécile Le Claire, Ilkka Kouri, Ionas Laine, Diana Lauren, Janne Mattila, Carly Markkanen, Natalia Parshutkina, Mika Pasanen, Taina Saarinen, Hellin Karoliina Saastamoinen and Minka Salmirinne.
In September 2025, NPT brought together 25 performance artists from around the world, presenting works in numerous local art organizations and spaces in Turku. During the Biennale week, each audience ambassador hosted audience groups to witness and engage with the experimental practices of performance art, facilitate dialogues, and give way to meaningful explorations and shared experiences.
The Audience Ambassador Program was done in collaboration with Tehdas Teatteri, Ehkä-production, Regional Dance Centre of Western Finland, Art House Turku, Turku City Theatre, Turku City Library, WAM Kilta gallery, Aurinkobaletti Dance Company, Turku Art Museum, and Aura of Puppets.
The Audience Ambassadors 2025 pilot was supported by the Arts Promotion Centre Finland (Taiteen edistämiskeskus) and The Finnish Cultural Foundation (Suomen kulttuurirahasto).
The programme was coordinated by Maria Laitila, Producer of Audience Development.
The key insights and lessons learned from the 2025 Audience Ambassador pilot were compiled into an online publication, released in connection with the project’s final seminar on 26 March 2026. The seminar featured presentations by audience engagement experts Maria Villa, Katja Kirsi, Kaija Kaitavuori and Aatu Pyy, as well as reflections on their own work from the audience ambassadors Salla Anttonen, Natalia Parshutkina, Mika Pasanen, Carly Markkanen, Ionas Laine, Cécile Le Claire and Taina Saarinen.
Explore the new audience engagement concept and read more about the ambassadors’ experiences on the website: www.yleisolahettilaat.fi