Two women dance above Oulu’s Merikoski in Finnish first

Two women performed on a steel cable above the canal at the Merikoski power plant in Oulu on Saturday, in a feat that had never been attempted in Finland, Yle reported.

Hanna Moisala and Sanja Kosonen danced on a 60-metre-long cable, 16 millimetres thick and suspended eight metres above the fast-flowing water.

“We want to give people a good feeling and make them think about the crossings we have to make in our everyday lives,” Moisala said.

Moisala and Kosonen are circus artists and tightrope performers. They had been developing the Ylitys performance for several years and worked extensively on bringing it to life over the past year.

Oliver Zimmerman, a German rigging specialist who now lives in France, was responsible for installing the cable. He began examining possible attachment points in November.

“Crossing the river presented a challenge because there is a strong current in the water,” Zimmerman said.

Zimmerman is also a tightrope walker and has extensive experience installing cables above water. This was his first time working in Finland.

Moisala said the performers’ safety had been addressed in several ways during the installation, although, as she put it, “it is not an option for us not to stay on the cable.”

Community was one of the performance’s main themes. The show lasted about 40 minutes, most of which the pair spent moving among the audience and handing out small strips of fabric.

The performance drew large crowds. The riverbanks at Toivoniemi and Tuira were full, as was the bridge connecting the two areas.

“I think this is something really significant for the people of Oulu, something that will remain in their memories for decades,” Moisala said.