Heinz-Juhani Hofmann:
The Public Life and Death of Afrodite "Didi" Hakkarainen
A multidisciplinary, socially engaged opera trilogy of our time.
Myself/Myself/Myself (2024)
An opera for female voice, actress, and electronics dives into the mind of the neurodivergent Didi on the threshold of adulthood. Didi’s intense monologues reveal her struggle with obsessions, unrealistic dreams, and the pressures of the surrounding world. The work explores in depth appearance-related pressures, economic inequality, and climate change, amid which Didi searches for her place.
Upcoming performances:
14.11.2026 WHS Teatteri Union, Helsinki
15.11.2026 WHS Teatteri Union, Helsinki
22.11. TBA
Didi vs The World (2025)
A work composed of short, dramatic scenes for female voice and electric guitar in public spaces does not ask for attention—it demands it. It tears open society’s rigid norms and the structures that prevent belonging, making visible a young woman’s struggle for the right to exist.
Upcoming performances:
1.7.2026 Time of Music, Viitasaari
4.12.2026 WHS Teatteri Union, Helsinki
5.12.2026 WHS Teatteri Union, Helsinki
Afrodite´s Death (2027)
The final part of the series explores themes of memory illness and caregiving; it is a tragedy about the fragility of memories—and, ultimately, of everything.
Coming February 2027
About the Project
The work series The Public Life and Death of Afrodite “Didi” Hakkarainen is a long-term collaborative project by composer-librettist Heinz-Juhani Hofmann and singer-performer Annika Fuhrmann. This multidisciplinary body of work, which boldly combines opera, theatre, performance, social media, video, and live art, explores the experiences of a neurodivergent individual in today’s complex society.
At the center of the series is a woman who struggles with neurodiversity and its associated challenges, both in her personal life and within society. Neurodiversity is not an illness. We are all different—but where is the line at which society begins to see an individual as “too” different? At the same time, the series forms a multidimensional fresco that encompasses this difficult world in its entirety, without shying away from its darker and more brutal aspects—of both the world and human nature.
Each part of the series is given its own audiovisual identity, and every installment forms a self-contained whole that can also be presented independently.
"The expressive text of the approximately hour-long, compact performance is full of sharp psychological and societal observations that reach in many directions. Despite its heavy subject matter, it is also a strikingly beautiful whole."
Tuomas Rantanen, Voima (5.9.2024)
“Rarely has opera aligned so closely with the day’s news headlines as in Heinz-Juhani Hofmann’s new work Myself/Myself/Myself. […] The protagonist of Hofmann’s opera, a young woman named Didi, or Aphrodite, charges headfirst into the world with such fury that it is terrifying to watch."
Harri Kuusisaari, Rondo (26.8.2024)
"This summer, there has once again been discussion about the masculinity and conservatism of the opera world. Into this conversation, Myself/Myself/Myself and the entire Helsinki Contemporary Opera Festival programme at the Aleksander Theatre make an excellent contribution.”
Vesa Sirén, Helsingin Sanomat (24.8.2024)
Heinz-Juhani Hofmann
Composer-librettist Heinz-Juhani Hofmann is especially known for his operas dealing with difficult societal issues, his strong text-driven approach, and his expressive musical language.
Annika Fuhrmann
Annika Fuhrmann is a versatile singer and musician, known as a vocal artist who expands the boundaries of singing. Fuhrmann is particularly at home in the fields of experimental music theatre, sound art, and improvisation.
Follow @didihakkarainen
Starting in autumn 2024, Didi Hakkarainen will regularly publish video material on her social media channels (Instagram, TikTok, Youtube, Bluesky, Facebook). Alongside Didi’s personal outpourings, current, topical themes and news headlines will appear. Didi’s social media channel serves as a way to explore new modes of expression in experimental, socially engaged music theatre and to respond quickly to current issues. At the same time, the videos form a narrative arc that organically leads into the next parts of the work series.
