Meet the delve Artists at Spraoi 2024

Jenni Nikinmaa is a poet, performer, playwright and theatre-maker from Finland, based on the island of Inishmore. She writes weird and wonderful plays that make you laugh while they talk about grim topics such as trauma, self-harm & abuse. Her work often spills outside of traditional spaces: In 2023, she premiered an outdoor promenade show THE ENCHANTED in Birr, and in 2021 a digital show IT´S TRUE I LOVE YOU ALL SO MUCH. She has also worked with Exit Games in London to create a play that happens in Google Docs – ECO CHAMBERS – and explored one-on-one shows with a poetic fortune telling POETRY FORTUNES. She works with binaural and spatial sound, makes immersive pieces with gentle audience interactions, and believes in theatre as a transformative experience. 2023 Jenni was part of FUEL, the development program of Druid Theatre in Galway, Dublin Fringe Artist at Work, and did a residency at Pavilion Theatre in Dun Laoghaire. During these, she was developing a play called Sheep! which is a play about sexual assault, flocks and belonging. 2022 she participated in MAKE residency. She has been supported by many wonderful human beings, as well as Arts Council of Ireland, Kone Foundation and others.

Belén Vergara, is originally from Chile. She arrived in Ireland two years ago with her partner Jose (Pepe). They focus on the performance of acrobatics duo in the language of circus and theatre, or contemporary, in which they have presented their work in various festivals in different cities in Ireland. They also teach aerial circus and acrobatics, at the Irish Aerial Creation Centre space.