Three Sisters by Big Wolf Company

On a particularly fine day last week, in an outdoor section of the up-and-coming Krulli Kvartal, the Big Wolf Company set up a simple, engaging space for relaxation, physical storytelling, and dizzying feats of aerial acrobatics. Established in 2015, this contemporary circus troupe, comprised of Estonians Grete Gross and Liseth Wolk, has teamed up with Latvian Alise Bokaldere under the “outside eye” of Kati Kivitar to develop a modern performance reflecting on the traditional and folkloric roles of Nordic women that works on multiple levels – metaphorically and literally.

The order of the day was green leaves, blue skies, and sunlight falling gently on an all-ages crowd as a DJ entertained the audience before the show, people crowding around the pop-up venue’s snack shop, bean bags, and pallet-chairs to find the best spot before the performers arrive on scene. Delightfully, there was not a bad view available as the staging resembled an oversized swingset – something not far at all from what it transforms into throughout the show. 

At the outset, however, the stage area is simple and naturalistic, with microphones disguised amongst the props and set pieces. As the show’s playlist kicked in, the DJ’s music became a backing track to a live vocalist, with traditional strings played by hand and tech while a cool breeze swept across the evening. The performers entered the space to the excitement of all, formal but cheerful in their traditional garb. What follows is nothing short of magical.

Without trying to spell out a narrative that was pure wordless poetry, the three sisters in the tale are born, suffer loss and love and loss again, depending on one another and the seemingly fragile structures and ropes – again real and metaphorical – that bind and support them. Dreamy aerial interludes and grounded physical comedy describe the intimacy, cooperation, and intertwined dependence of family. Individual moments of performance allowed each artist to shine, even as the framework of family shows them to be solo, but never alone. Gender expectations and social roles are picked up, examined, exchanged and discarded as we follow the sisters through time and space as they ascend and descend the temporary structure, symbolic and so very strong.

The sound design deserves special note for its echoes and swells of natural and instrumental sounds, the pacing and volume underscoring the stories unravelling before us. The props and set pieces were creatively deployed, and the stunts and occasional anecdotes leave the audience laughing and gasping in turn. The entire performance is a unified expression of speed, grace, and physical control, a masterwork of storytelling through the medium of the body.

This was the only performance of The Three Sisters during the 2025 Tallinn Fringe Festival, but the Big Wolf Company can be hired to share this or its other, no doubt equally impressive tales that I will be keeping an eye out for. Details and technical riders can be found on their site. The Tallinn Fringe continues through 18 September with more dance, circus, comedy, and musical shows to come.

Author: Laurie

Laurie likes alliteration, ambiance, and lists with three things.