Rakastajat Theatre is a professional theatre company based in Pori, founded in 1991. The theatre stages 1–3 of its own premieres each year; in addition, its programme features guest performances by the country’s leading artists, live music, stand-up comedy and a wide range of events. Rakastajat Theatre has two performance spaces in Pori. The small stage, Studio Hilkka, opened in 1997. This intimate black-box studio space seats 50–100 audience members, whilst the theatre café accommodates around 30. The theatre’s main stage, Kehräämö, is situated in the historic Puuvilla district of Pori. Kehräämö is a popular and well-known venue for theatre performances,
music gigs, parties and corporate events alike. Kehräämö can accommodate 120–200 audience members in a seated arrangement, thanks to its versatile seating layout.
Between 2000 and 2022, the Rakastajat Theatre organised the ‘Lain§uojattomat’ Theatre Festival in Pori for independent professional theatre groups, which each year brought numerous interesting performances from the independent performing arts scene to audiences in Satakunta. Once Rakastajat became eligible for state funding, responsibility for organising the festival was handed over to Helsinki-based KokoTeatteri, which has
since organised the ‘Lain§uojattomat’ festival in Iisalmi, where Rakastajat Theatre has had the great pleasure of performing.
In 2024, the theatre organised Finland’s first four-day HOP!fest
festival, specialising in international street theatre and street circus performances taking place on the streets and in the open air; the festival was continued in 2025 and 2026.