Uniarts Helsinki launches a master’s programme in musical theatre with support from the Swedish Cultural Foundation in Finland and Finnish Cultural Foundation
The new master’s degree programme is one of a kind in the Nordic countries.
Uniarts Helsinki is launching a master’s degree programme in musical theatre. The master’s programme will train performers for musical theatre, and the first students will be selected to the programme in spring 2026. The new master’s programme will bring together the excellence of two academies at Uniarts Helsinki: music education of the Sibelius Academy and performing arts education of the Theatre Academy.
The bilingual master’s programme in musical theatre is established with the help of donations made by the Swedish Cultural Foundation in Finland and the Finnish Cultural Foundation. Both foundations are funding the launch of the programme with 300,000 euros. The languages of the degrees and instruction within the programme will be Finnish and Swedish, which will support graduates’ employment in both Finnish- and Swedish-language theatre sectors.
“We have dreamed of a joint master’s programme in musical theatre since the founding of Uniarts Helsinki. It’s wonderful that the dream is now becoming a reality thanks to funding from the foundations,” Rector of Uniarts Helsinki Kaarlo Hildén says.
The master’s programme in musical theatre will create educational continuum in the artistic field, because until now, it has only been possible to study for a bachelor’s degree in the field in Finland. The new programme is one of a kind also outside its Finnish context: it is the only master-level musical theatre programme in the Nordic countries.
The programme will give students the skills needed for working in diverse roles in the field of musical theatre. Simultaneously, the programme will cater to the theatre sector’s need to ambitiously develop the artistic field that is seeing strong growth in its audience numbers in Finland. Besides Uniarts Helsinki’s regular staff, teaching will be provided by Finnish and international top talents who visit the programme as guest teachers.
“The master’s degree programme will deepen and diversify the competence of musical theatre professionals. The degree requirements will cover areas like acting, singing, dancing and musical expression,” explains Professor of Musical Theatre J. Martina Roos, who has been preparing the programme’s launch.
Wide-scale support from foundations
In addition to the Swedish Cultural Foundation in Finland and the Finnish Cultural Foundation, the programme’s launch has received long-term support from the Pacius Fund, operating under the Society of Swedish Literature in Finland. Another important step in setting up the master’s programme was made when a five-year professorship in musical theatre was established at Uniarts Helsinki’s Theatre Academy thanks to funding from the Waldemar von Frenckell Foundation. The professorship was awarded to J. Martina Roos.