Turning a dream into a career at CultureEspoo
For years, Mehdi Rezai had dreamed of working in a concert hall. He finally landed his dream job as a stage manager at Kannusali’s unique underground event arena.
Mehdi Rezai has been working as a stage manager at Kannusali for three and a half years. No two workdays are the same: sometimes Mehdi is needed as a lighting designer for performances, while other days involve mixing sound, building the stage or repairing things.
“Kannusali has both seated and standing sections, and the seats have to be arranged correctly for concerts,” Mehdi explains.
Mehdi has learned lighting techniques on the job at Kannusali. Alongside his work, he has studied sound engineering and media and gained experience in electrical work. But what interested him most was stage management.
“Many years ago, I dreamed of a job like the one I have now, where I get to work with different bands and performances every week,” Mehdi says with a smile.
An international life
Mehdi was born in Iran, where his Afghan parents had fled to escape war. Mehdi is multilingual; in addition to his mother tongues, Dari and Farsi, he speaks English and, thanks to his many years in Finland, fluent Finnish.
“Life as a refugee in Iran was difficult. I moved to Finland at 16 to join my grandmother and aunt. My other family members now live in the U.S. I haven’t seen them in ten years, but by the end of this year I will finally be able to visit them,” says Mehdi, who was recently granted Finnish citizenship.
In his free time, Mehdi enjoys working out at the gym and writing music.
“I make rap songs and music videos together with my group,” he says.
Underground event arena in Espoon keskus
What Mehdi loves most about Kannusali are his great colleagues and the friendly atmosphere. The venue is also easy to reach by train, as the civil defence shelter where the event arena is located is close to Espoo railway station.
Kannusali hosts a wide range of cultural events, including concerts, children’s events, film screenings and stand-up comedy. Event information is available on Kannusali’s website.
Mehdi’s culture tips
The stage manager is interested in all kinds of culture, especially concerts and visual arts. He praises Espoo as an excellent cultural city:
“The cultures of different countries are very visible in Espoo, and there are many opportunities for all kinds of cultural experiences here,” Mehdi says.
For October, Mehdi picked four cultural events in Espoo that caught his interest:
- Film: Wall-E (9 October, Vindängen Hall) “Wall-E is my favourite childhood film. It’s about a robot who experiences all kinds of adventures and ends up alone. I find it fascinating.”
- Sentenced ‘Buried Alive’ 20th anniversary by Ehdonalainen (11 October, Kannusali) “Metal performances are exciting and impressive. I don’t usually listen to heavy metal, but I enjoy live concerts.”
- Aidantakainen Atlas – shadow puppetry performance (24 October, Children’s Cultural Centre Aurora) “There’s something special about performances created by hand.”
- Megamuskari - Megamusicplayschool (25 October, Kannusali) “A feel-good children’s event with happy music. It reminds me of my own childhood!”
For more ideas, see the CultureEspoo event calendar.