{"id":10259,"date":"2020-10-18T17:46:25","date_gmt":"2020-10-18T15:46:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/helensjoholm.nu\/_eng\/?page_id=10259"},"modified":"2020-10-18T19:45:44","modified_gmt":"2020-10-18T17:45:44","slug":"the-hit-musical-turns-25-magic-lifted-us","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/helensjoholm.nu\/_eng\/press-clips\/various-2020\/the-hit-musical-turns-25-magic-lifted-us\/","title":{"rendered":"The hit musical turns 25: “Magic lifted us”"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Applause

Helen Sj\u00f6holm, Bj\u00f6rn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson and Anders Ekborg during the premiere in Malm\u00f6. Photo and \u00a9 Anders Deros<\/p><\/div>\n

Helen Sj\u00f6holm about the Kristina from Duvem\u00e5la<\/em> premiere in 1995: “Something you can only experience once in a lifetime”<\/strong><\/p>\n

Aftonbladet 201007<\/strong><\/p>\n

By: FRIDA CARLQVIST<\/p>\n

“Success” and “among the best Bj\u00f6rn and Benny ever done” – that’s how Aftonbladet described the premiere of Kristina from Duvem\u00e5la<\/em> in October 1995. Today it\u00b4s 25 years since the grand premiere.<\/strong>
\n\u2013 It was almost impossible to take how many eyes and ears were turned towards Malm\u00f6 at the time, Helen Sj\u00f6holm says to Aftonbladet.<\/strong><\/p>\n

On October 7, 1995, expectations were high at Malm\u00f6 Musikteater, now Malm\u00f6 Opera. The giants Bj\u00f6rn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson’s musical version of Wilhelm Moberg’s Utvandrarna (The Emigrants)<\/em> had its world premiere. Kristina from Duvem\u00e5la<\/em> is the story of the loving spouses Kristina and Karl-Oskar and a small group of people who leave Sm\u00e5land for a new life in America.<\/p>\n

When Aftonbladet now, 25 years later, contacts the protagonists, they all tell of a hard work with the musical – but above all of a very important period.<\/p>\n

\u2013 The period with Kristina was extremely important to me, it has meant a lot, says Helen Sj\u00f6holm who played the title role Kristina.<\/p>\n

\u2013 Everything but Kristina ended up far down the list. But magic lifted us. It was dizzying on all levels and something you can only experience once in a lifetime, says Helen Sj\u00f6holm.<\/p>\n

Anders Ekborg, who played Kristina’s husband Karl-Oskar, says that the musical meant a lot to him.<\/p>\n

\u2013 It\u00b4s almost difficult to put into words. It changed my whole career and my life.<\/p>\n

The musical was the breakthrough for current musical veterans Helen Sj\u00f6holm and Peter J\u00f6back, who played Karl-Oskar’s brother Robert and whose Guldet blev till sand (Gold Can Turn To Sand )<\/em> is one of the most famous songs from the musical.<\/p>\n

\u2013 It was tough and frustrating sometimes – but if you love the creation and the nerve that appears in those contexts, it was like a dream, Peter J\u00f6back says to Aftonbladet.<\/p>\n

Marianne M\u00f6rck: “People cried outside”<\/h5>\n

One of those who stood on the premiere stage was Marianne M\u00f6rck.<\/p>\n

\u2013 It was an exciting premiere, people stood up and they never stopped applauding. It was a man who just got up and screamed, she says when Aftonbladet meets her in Malm\u00f6 Opera’s foyer.<\/p>\n

Marianne M\u00f6rck played the role of Fina-Kajsa, who is emigrating to her son in America, and was also assistant director and child manager. She says that everyone in the ensemble went hard for their roles.<\/p>\n

(\u2026)<\/p>\n

The musical received a huge reception and the premiere received four plus in rating by Aftonbladet’s reviewer.<\/p>\n

\u2013 It was a brilliant success. People cried outside when there were no tickets, says Marianne M\u00f6rck.<\/p>\n

“The same fate – different eras”<\/h5>\n

Harriet Cronstr\u00f6m was also on stage during the premiere. In total, she participated in 550 performances in Malm\u00f6 and in Stockholm.<\/p>\n

\u2013 It was sold out all the time, it was like a fever in the house. It was amazing.<\/p>\n

Harriet Cronstr\u00f6m played the character Inga-Lena who seeks happiness through emigration, but who dies on the ship to America. She believes that the musical’s content is highly topical even today.<\/p>\n

\u2013 It’s about emigrating because it was so poor, and it’s the same fate as people who now immigrate here. It was the same fate, albeit in different eras. It felt very important, says Harriet Cronstr\u00f6m.<\/p>\n

(…)<\/p>\n

“Everyone was completely still and listened”<\/h5>\n

Christel R\u00f6nn was one of those who worked as a dresser behind the scenes during the original set. Today she is head of costume technology at the opera. During the playing periods in Malm\u00f6, she worked as a dressmaker alongside a full-time job.<\/p>\n

(…)<\/p>\n

Both Harriet and Christel especially remember the scene when Helen Sj\u00f6holm sings Du m\u00e5ste finnas (You Have To Be There)<\/em>, extra strong.<\/p>\n

\u2013 When Helen Sj\u00f6holm sang it, you stood behind the scenes, everyone was completely still behind and listening. Even though you heard it as many times as you like, it became like a lump in your chest. And then she ran off, then she would have a shawl over her shoulders, then she ran around and onto the stage again. So she had a lot to do, Helen, Christel R\u00f6nn says.<\/p>\n

Helen Sj\u00f6holm – Kristina from Duvem\u00e5la<\/h5>\n

What has Kristina from Duvem\u00e5la meant to you?
\n<\/strong><\/em>\u2013 The period with Kristina was extremely important to me, it has meant a lot! To be able to work with an original set, be involved in creating something from scratch and to be able to live with a character and performance for five years. It was a role that gave me a great challenge and taught me a lot – both about the profession and about myself. The playing time was incredibly fun, but very demanding. It was all about strength, that is, everything but Kristina ended up far down the list. But magic lifted us. The whole creation was an artistic bubble that brought you on a journey every time. It was an incredible ensemble. It was dizzying on all levels and something you can only experience once in a lifetime, Helen Sj\u00f6holm says to Aftonbladet.<\/p>\n

How was the time around the premiere in Malm\u00f6?
\n<\/strong><\/em>\u2013 I remember the premiere as concentrated and big. There was so much expectation, both from us in the ensemble and everyone outside. It was nervous but pleasurable, a little unreal, it was almost impossible to take how many eyes and ears were turned towards Malm\u00f6 at that time. The weeks before the premiere were so intense with reworkings to the end, there were big changes just days before and small even the same day! It was intense in such a way that I couldn\u00b4t really take anything outside the theater, which was perhaps a good thing. And then – the reception! Totally amazing.<\/p>\n

Anders Ekborg – Karl-Oskar, husband of Kristina<\/h5>\n

What has Kristina from Duvem\u00e5la meant to you?
\n<\/strong><\/em>\u2013 It\u00b4s almost difficult to put into words, it has meant an incredible amount. It changed my whole career and my life in general changed at the same time, as I had children. It went hand in hand with Karl-Oskar to become a father. It was a milestone in life and a fantastic gift to be part of such a historical thing. It was great fun that according to every leaflet it was a total success, Anders Ekborg says to Aftonbladet.<\/p>\n

How was the time around the premiere in Malm\u00f6?
\n<\/strong><\/em>\u2013 It was very hectic and an incredibly big pressure on everyone, that now this would be made into a musical. It was difficult to grasp how much interest there was from all over the world. Moberg’s Utvandrarna<\/em> is our national epic, you wanted to shoulder the responsibility. Bj\u00f6rn and Benny, everyone felt that this must be good. We had been working on this very improvisationally for a few months and before the premiere the material was 6.5 hours long. The last few weeks we deleted the most, the hard part was remembering what had been deleted – is this left? Once we stood there in front of the audience at the premiere, we hadn\u00b4t done the final version more than once or twice. Then it was extremely tiring too, in the beginning we played six shows a week, and this show was four and a half hours, so we were completely finished. Plus you might not sleep that much. It was like a fog there at first, but it was amazing, you loved it every time you went to the theater.<\/p>\n

Peter J\u00f6back – Robert, brother of Karl-Oskar<\/h5>\n

What has Kristina from Duvem\u00e5la meant to you?
\n<\/strong><\/em>\u2013 I learned a lot during the “Kristina” period. It was a fantastic group work led by the ingenious Lars Rudolfsson, Bj\u00f6rn and Benny’s lyrics and music and all my wonderful colleagues, everything was at a level I longed to end up in. It was also the start of my international career in musical theater. I’m extremely grateful for that. We got so close and I made friends for life! I am extremely impressed and inspired by the people I met, Peter J\u00f6back says to Aftonbladet.<\/p>\n

How was the time around the premiere in Malm\u00f6?
\n<\/strong><\/em>\u2013 I enjoyed every second – I loved the creation and the fact that we got to be part of shaping a new musical theater work on a world level. There was a lot that was changed and deleted and rewritten all the time. It was tough and frustrating at times – but if you love the creation and the nerve that is present in those contexts, it was like a dream!<\/p>\n

\u00c5sa Bergh – Ulrika in V\u00e4sterg\u00f6hl<\/h5>\n

What has Kristina from Duvem\u00e5la meant to you?
\n<\/strong><\/em>\u2013 It has been very important to me. Just having been in an original set and just the set that was so good. I\u00b4m very fond of Moberg’s books and the characters, it\u00b4s a part of our history and a great masterpiece. I’m still so in love with the work, we didn\u00b4t get tired of the material even though we played it for so long, \u00c5sa Bergh says to Aftonbladet.<\/p>\n

How was the time around the premiere in Malm\u00f6?
\n<\/strong><\/em>\u2013 It was nervous, of course, but it was damn cool when the premiere was. It was so fun to work with this material and be part of their creative process, and it went on almost until the premiere. It’s exciting to be part of an original set and that they wrote while we rehearsed. Everyone was also so concerned that the work would be good, when you manage to get everyone in the same direction, it becomes such a damn strong energy, it becomes so powerful.<\/p>\n

\"The

Peter J\u00f6back, Benny Andersson, Helen Sj\u00f6holm, Anders Ekborg, Bj\u00f6rn Ulvaeus and \u00c5sa Bergh during a press conference in 1995. Photo and \u00a9 Lars Rosengren<\/p><\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

(The entire report is not reproduced for copyright reasons)<\/em><\/p>\n

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Helen Sj\u00f6holm about the Kristina from Duvem\u00e5la premiere in 1995: “Something you can only experience once in a lifetime” Aftonbladet 201007 By: FRIDA CARLQVIST “Success” Read More …<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":9354,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-10259","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/helensjoholm.nu\/_eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/10259","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/helensjoholm.nu\/_eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/helensjoholm.nu\/_eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/helensjoholm.nu\/_eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/helensjoholm.nu\/_eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10259"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/helensjoholm.nu\/_eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/10259\/revisions"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/helensjoholm.nu\/_eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/9354"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/helensjoholm.nu\/_eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10259"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}