Agnes Mowinckel
Encyclopedia
Agnes Mowinckel was a Norwegian actress and theatre director, born in Bergen
. She was Norway's first professional stage director. She was a pioneer in bringing painters to the theatre, using light as an artistic element, and engaging contemporary composers. She took part in theatrical experiments, worked at small stages in Oslo, and founded her own theatre.
Her first stage production was an adaptation of Wedekind
's play Spring Awakening at Intimteatret in 1922, and she then worked as stage director for Det Norske Teatret
from 1923 to 1925. From 1927 to 1928 she led the avant-garde theatre Balkongen
in Oslo. In 1929 she staged the first production at Det Nye Teater
. During the 1930s she directed a series of performances at Nationaltheatret
and Det Norske Teatret. After World War II
, when she was in her seventies, she was involved with the establishment of Studioteatret
and Folketeatret
, she produced plays for Trøndelag Teater
, and a number of plays for Nationaltheatret. She had a masterful and spirited personality, and has been called the mare
of Norwegian theatre
.
As an actress she was often used in protagonist
roles, but rarely had long-term assignments. She made her stage début at the Bergen theatre Den Nationale Scene
in 1899, and joined Sekondteatret
in its first season, until she got married. After ten years she made a comeback as actress, touring one year with Nationalturneen, and played one season with Trondhjems nationale Scene
. She participated in Danish films in the mid 1910s, appeared regularly at Centralteatret
from 1916 to 1921, and had a three years assignment as actress for Det Nye Teater
from 1928.
as the daughter of merchant Edward Christian Mowinckel and Cornelia Schultz Blydt, and had eight siblings. She belonged to a prominent family, being a descendant of merchant Johan Ernst Mowinckel
(1759–1816). Her eldest brother Johan Ernst
was a merchant and leading politician in Bergen, and also a member of the Norwegian Parliament for one period. Johan Ernst supported her career morally when she chose to become an actress, and later helped her financially when needed, including funding her visits to England and Paris. Her brother Harald had taken over their father's business, one of Norways largest fish exporters. Her sister Johanne Vogt was among the first women meeting at the Norwegian Parliament (as a suppleant for Henrik Ameln
).
She was a second cousin of Prime Minister
Johan Ludwig Mowinckel
, and a sister-in-law of theatre critics Gunnar Heiberg
and Sigurd Bødtker
. From 1899 to 1909 she was married to ship broker
Hans Brecke Blehr, and had three children with him until they divorced. She later became a close friend of her brother-in-law Sigurd Bødtker, after his divorce from Blehr's sister in 1910, and they eventually lived together.
In 1917 she bought a summer house at the island Hvasser
. The place was called "Abergeldie", from a name plate found on the beach and mounted above the outer door. An annex called "Sivertstua" was raised and came to be Sigurd Bødtker's residence. Her house at Hvasser was regularly visited by her friends, becoming a meeting place for painters and writers.
to take classes in drawing at Den kgl. Tegneskole
. In Kristiania she became a close friend with actress Laura Gundersen
. She visited Laura and Sigvard Gundersen
's home several days a week, and helped with the study of plays. Laura Gundersen was the leading actress at Christiania Theatre
at the time. Mowinckel's friend from Bergen, Hans Blehr, was also in Kristiania. Together with him she visited the cafés of the city, where they joined the circle of artists, many of whom later came to be part of her social network. After one year in Kristiania she returned to Bergen. Back in Bergen she worked as a teacher at a school for girls. She also took lessons with instructor Ludovica Levy
at Den Nationale Scene
. She made her stage début at Den Nationale Scene on 2 January 1899, as "Anna Hielm" in Heiberg
's play Kong Midas. Her second début was as "Hjørdis" in Ibsen
's Hærmendene paa Helgeland
. She was offered a position at Den Nationale Scene in Bergen, but chose to join Ludovica Levy at her Sekondteater
in Kristiania. At Sekondteatret's first performance in August 1899 she played the character "Mary Stuart" in Schiller's play of the same name. In October she played "Anna Hielm" in Kong Midas in Kristiania. Mowinckel married Hans Blehr in October 1899. Her eldest son Hans was born in June 1900, and her daughter Karen Lisbeth in October 1901. Blehr's house at Lysaker
, a large house with several servants, became a meeting place for painters and writers, with Mowinckel-Blehr as hostess. Among her friends were the writers Sigurd Bødtker
, Sven Elvestad
, Olaf Bull
, Nils Kjær
and Nils Collett Vogt
, and the painters Christian
and Oda Krohg
. Her first appearance at Nationaltheatret was in 1902, in a few performances when she replaced Ragna Wettergreen
in the title role in Ibsen's Fru Inger til Østraat
.
' play Revolusjonsbryllup , and her interpretation of the character "Mrs. Hertz" in Nathansen
's play Daniel Hertz was well received by the critics. She was among the first staff at Trondhjems nationale Scene
from 1911, and stayed in Trondheim
for one season. At the opening perforance she played the character "Borghild" in Bjørnson
's Sigurd Jorsalfar, and in Ibsen
's Fruen fra havet
she played the character "Elida Wangel". She also played the character "Elida" at Den Nationale Scene
in Bergen in 1912. A visit to London and Paris in 1912 was influential for her later role as stage director. In London she was influenced by Gordon Craig
and his theories on theatrical design
, such as stage composition
and use of light
. In Paris she was particularly inspired by Charles Dullin
, and his way of interweaving drama with music and painting. In the 1910s she participated in a few Danish films. One of these was the short film Proletargeniet from 1914, where she played the wife of a professor. It is assumed that she participated in three or four films, but details about the other films appear to be lost.
When she returned to Kristiania and found a home at Elisenbergveien she still had contact with her social network. Her home was open for family and friends. Among the visitors were theatre critic Sigurd Bødtker, who eventually moved in with her, Olaf Bull, Nils Kjær, Helge Krog
, Ronald Fangen
, Sigurd Hoel
, Nini Roll Anker
, Oda Krohg, Hulda Garborg
, Sigrid Undset
, Jens Thiis
and Sven Elvestad. The group regularly met at the restaurant Anden Etage at Hotel Continental
. She was always carefully dressed, often with self-designed costumes and hats.
At Centralteatret in 1916 she played the title character in Jan Fabricius' play Fru Ynske, and the character "Rosa Mamai" in Daudet
's play L'Arlésienne. In 1917 she played the character "Anna Hielm" at Centralteatret, in Kong Midas. Her interpretation of "Mrs. Alving" in Ibsen
's Ghosts
at Centralteatret in 1919 was praised by the critics. The 1924 edition of the encyclopedia Salmonsens Konversationsleksikon
mentions "Mrs. Alving" among her best roles. In 1921, her performance of the title character in Ibsen's Fru Inger til Østraat
at Centralteatret was a popular success, garnering praise in critical reviews.
's play Spring Awakening at Intimteatret. The performance was well received by the public, with standing ovations. This was the first time Munch
's paintings were used at a Norwegian stage. In a retrospective article from 1939 Anton Rønneberg
characterized this event as an important day in the history of Norwegian theatre. He pointed at her artistic eye for the stage setting, and for the harmony between stage decorations, costumes, light and choreography.
Mowinckel produced a total of 28 plays for Det Norske Teatret
. Johan Borgen
acknowledged Mowinckel particularly for her introduction of recent European drama to Det Norske Teatret. Her first production was Myrkemakti
by Tolstoi in February 1923, after which she was appointed as stage instructor for Det Norske Teatret for a period of two years. She produced Lagerlöf
's play Keisaren av Portugalia in April 1923, Lenormand's play Raudtind in October, and Skjoldborg
's Mikkel Larsen-gutane in October 1923. Her direction of Tu
's comedy Kjærleik på Lykteland in December 1923 came to be one of the greatest box-office successes at the theatre. In January 1924 she played the title role in Ibsen's Fru Inger til Østråt. In March of the same year she produced Rytter
's Herman Ravn, in April Ørjasæter
's début play Jo Gjende, and in October Capek
's R.U.R.. In November 1924 she both produced and played the main character in Nexö's Dangardsfolket. In 1924 Mowinckel staged Crommelynck
's play Den praktfulde hanrei (in ) at Det Frie Teater. This was actress Tore Løkkeberg
's first sensation, when she played the character "Stella", exposing her bare breast. In February 1925 she produced Gullvåg
's historical play Den lange notti for Det Norske Teatret.
as a permanent stage director for Nationaltheatret
. This decision was apparently not popular among the veteran actors. Her first production was a success, an adaptaton of Vane
's play Outward Bound (translated as ), staged in September 1925. Her next effort turned into a disaster, when she was asked to stage Ibsen's play Little Eyolf
, and primadonna Johanne Dybwad
, who played one of the roles, refused to cooperate. The play was then dropped from the repertoire. In January 1926 she staged Bergman
's Swedenhielms, and in March 1926 Christiansen
's Edmund Jahr. Her production of Shaw
's play Jeanne d'Arc
in November 1926, in which opera singer Cally Monrad
played the title role, was not as successful as expected. In the aftermath, influential staff members at the theatre blamed Mowinckel for the debacle, and asked theatre director Bjørnson
to dismiss her from her position as stage director. Mowinckel was allowed leave the same day, and released from her contract for the next season. Bjørnson himself resigned from his position a half year later. It would be seven years before she gained her next assignment for Nationaltheatret.
. It was located in Brødrene Hals' old concert hall, which had formerly been used by the revue theatre Chat Noir
. The first production was Aleichem's play Hevnens gud. Other productions were Langer
's play Periferi , Kaus
' play Toni, Ansky
's Dybuk, Ibsen's Fruen fra havet
, and the first stage production of Obstfelder
's De røde draaber.
' play Frå fest til fest for Det Norske Teatret, and O'Casey
's Plogen og stjernone in September 1929. She played the male character "Thy" in Hamsun
's Livets Spill at the opening performance at Det Nye Teater
in February 1929, and directed and played in Ibsen's Et dukkehjem
for Det Nye Teater in 1929. In 1931 she staged Stuart's comedy Fra ni til seks at Centralteatret
. At Det Norske Teatret in March 1931 she staged an adaptation of Frank
's Carl and Anna, in October O'Neill
's Alle Guds born har vengjer
, and in November 1931 Soini
's Syndebukken. In February 1932 she produced Braaten
's adaptation of Zuckmayer
's play . As advertising they let German "soldiers" patrol the streets, which led to official protests from the German Embassy in Oslo. In May 1932 she produced Martinez Sierra
's play Dei spanske nonnone , in September Langer
's Kamelen gjennom nålauga , and in October 1932 Drabløs
' adaptation of Falkberget
's Eli Sjursdotter. In February 1933 she produced Glebov's Under Sovjet, and in December Ørjasæter's Anne på Torp. In 1933 she staged Gjesdahl
's adaptation of Winsloe
's play Gestern und heute at Det Nye Teater, a performance which made a strong impression on the public.
Mowinckel's next commission for Nationaltheatret after the incident in 1927 was her production of Oneill
's comedy Ah, Wilderness! (in ) in March 1934. This was the first European production of the comedy. From then she more or less regularly guested the theatre. Among her productions are Ibsen's John Gabriel Borkman
and Rosmersholm
, Bjørnson
's Paul Lange og Tora Parsberg, Skram
's Agnete, and plays by Pirandello
, Borgen
, Grieg and Abell
In April 1935 she produced Gorky
's Jegor Bulytsjov at Det Norske Teatret, the first staged production of this play outside the Soviet Union, and in October 1935 she produced Hoprekstad
's historical comedy Jarlen. She played the title character in Munk
's play Diktatorinnen at Nationaltheatret
in 1939.
's play Anne Pedersdotter
at Nationaltheatret in February 1941. She staged Kielland
's comedy Tre Par for Nationaltheatret in April 1941. Tre par was the last performance before the Nazi authorities took over the management of Nationaltheatret. In January 1942 she produced Wessel
's Kiærlighed uden strømper and in February Wiers-Jenssen
's Anne Pedersdotter
for Trøndelag Teater
. In October 1942 she staged Kinck
's play Agilulf den vise at the Det Norske Teatret, the last production before theatre director Hergel
fled the country to escape the German occupation.
with preparations for Studioteatret
's first production, an adaptation of Wilder
's play The Long Christmas Dinner
, but she did not want to be credited. The play premiered in Oslo on 15 June 1945, and was well received by the critic. In October 1945 she produced Ibsen's Fru Inger til Østråt for Trøndelag Teater
, the theatre's first production after the occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany
. The opening performance was held on 2 October, and Mowinckel also played the character "Inger Gyldenløve". On 6 October a memorial performance was held in memory of Henry Gleditsch
, with the presence of the Crown Prince
, the Crown Princess
and family members of victims from the extrajudicial executions in 1942. Mowinckel contributed by reading Grieg's poem "Årsdagen". In February 1946 she directed Wilder's play Our Town
for Studioteatret. The play was well received both by the critics and the public. During the summer 1946 the theatre toured Northern Troms
and Finnmark
, which had been severely damaged during the war, and they played Our Town at 26 different sites. In May 1947 Mowinckel staged Sartre
's play The Respectful Prostitute
for Studioteatret, with Merete Skavlan
as a successful prostitute "Lizzie". She played the character "Bernanda" in an adaptation of Lorca
's La casa de Bernarda Alba in 1947, staged by Gerda Ring
. In December 1948 she staged Abell
's play Dager på en sky at Nationaltheatret, and also played the character "Hera". In January 1949 she directed Strindberg
's Dødsdansen
at Det Norske Teatret. When she was in her 75th year she played the character "Thalia" in Abell's Dronning går igjen at Nationaltheatret, a play written specifically for her. A gala performance was held for her on 1 December, as a late celebration of her 50th anniversary as actress. In May 1950 she staged Ibsen's Kongsemnerne
for Oslo's millennium celebration. She staged Eliot
's play Cocktail Party
at Nationalteatret in April 1951, and Shaw
's play Caesar and Cleopatra
in November 1951. She directed the opening performance at Folketeatret
in 1952, Heiberg
's play Tante Ulrikke. In May 1953 she staged Schiller
's Maria Stuart at Nationaltheatret, at a gala performance for the official visit by Queen Juliana of the Netherlands
. She staged the first production of Stenersen
's Eva og Johannes at Nationalteatret in November 1953. In September 1954 she staged Ibsen's En Folkefiende
at Trøndelag Teater. In January 1955 Havrevold
's new play Uretten was staged by Mowinckel at Nationalteatret, and the play resulted in a fierce debate on women's rights. In May 1956 she produced Ibsen
's play Lille Eyolf
. Her last stage appearance was in 1963, when she performed as the aging "Camilla Collett
" at Oslo Nye Teater
.
once hung on the wall beside the entrance, but it was later moved to a less prominent position. A Christian Krohg
portrait is located in the National Gallery of Norway
. Henrik Sørensen
's painting is at Den Nationale Scene in Bergen, and a portrait by Kai Fjell
is located at Nationaltheatret.
Mowinckel's temperament was often fiery, earning her nicknames such as the "Volcano", "Storm centre", "Eagle" or "Natural disaster". Painter and theatre worker Ferdinand Finne
called her the "mare
of Norwegian theatre" Lyche 1990: p. 6 Her biographer Lise Lyche used this phrase as the title of her book, , published in 1990.
Mowinckel received the artists' scolarship from 1945, and was an Honorary member of the Norwegian Actors' Equity Association
from 1948. She is buried at the honorary cemetery Æreslunden at Vår Frelsers gravlund
in Oslo.
Bergen
Bergen is the second largest city in Norway with a population of as of , . Bergen is the administrative centre of Hordaland county. Greater Bergen or Bergen Metropolitan Area as defined by Statistics Norway, has a population of as of , ....
. She was Norway's first professional stage director. She was a pioneer in bringing painters to the theatre, using light as an artistic element, and engaging contemporary composers. She took part in theatrical experiments, worked at small stages in Oslo, and founded her own theatre.
Her first stage production was an adaptation of Wedekind
Frank Wedekind
Benjamin Franklin Wedekind , usually known as Frank Wedekind, was a German playwright...
's play Spring Awakening at Intimteatret in 1922, and she then worked as stage director for Det Norske Teatret
Det Norske Teatret
Det Norske Teatret is a theatre in Oslo. The theatre was founded in 1912, after an initiative from Hulda Garborg and Edvard Drabløs. It opened in 1913, touring with two plays, Ervingen by Ivar Aasen and Rationelt Fjøsstell by Hulda Garborg...
from 1923 to 1925. From 1927 to 1928 she led the avant-garde theatre Balkongen
Balkongen
Balkongen was an avant-garde theatre in Oslo established in 1927 and disestablished in 1928. Founder and artistical director was Agnes Mowinckel....
in Oslo. In 1929 she staged the first production at Det Nye Teater
Det Nye Teater
Det Nye Teater was a theatre that opened in Oslo in 1929, and ended as an independent theatre in 1959, when it merged with Folketeatret to form Oslo Nye Teater. The theatre's original purpose was to support contemporary Norwegian drama.-History:...
. During the 1930s she directed a series of performances at Nationaltheatret
Nationaltheatret
The National Theatre in Oslo is one of Norway's largest and most prominent venues for performance of dramatic arts.The theatre had its first performance on 1 September 1899 but can trace its origins to Christiania Theatre, which was founded in 1829...
and Det Norske Teatret. After World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, when she was in her seventies, she was involved with the establishment of Studioteatret
Studioteatret
Studioteatret is a former Norwegian theatre. It opened in 1945, shortly after the liberation, with Claes Gill as its first theatre director. Studioteatret is regarded as one of the earliest post-war artistic expressions in Norway, and most of its members later played important roles in Norwegian...
and Folketeatret
Folketeatret
Folketeatret is a theatre in Oslo, Norway. The building has existed longer than the theatre, and been used as a movie theatre and opera house....
, she produced plays for Trøndelag Teater
Trøndelag Teater
Trøndelag Teater is a large theater in the city of Trondheim, in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway.-Background:Trøndelag Teater stages large-scale dance and musical performances. Originally built in 1816, the theater is the oldest stage in Scandinavia in continuous use...
, and a number of plays for Nationaltheatret. She had a masterful and spirited personality, and has been called the mare
Mare (folklore)
A mare or nightmare is a spirit or goblin in Germanic folklore which rides on people's chests while they sleep, bringing on bad dreams . The mare is attested as early as in the Norse Ynglinga saga from the 13th century, but the belief itself is likely to be considerably older...
of Norwegian theatre
Theatre
Theatre is a collaborative form of fine art that uses live performers to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place. The performers may communicate this experience to the audience through combinations of gesture, speech, song, music or dance...
.
As an actress she was often used in protagonist
Protagonist
A protagonist is the main character of a literary, theatrical, cinematic, or musical narrative, around whom the events of the narrative's plot revolve and with whom the audience is intended to most identify...
roles, but rarely had long-term assignments. She made her stage début at the Bergen theatre Den Nationale Scene
Den Nationale Scene
Den Nationale Scene is the largest theatre in Bergen, Norway. Den Nationale Scene is also one of the oldest permanent theatre in Norway.-History:...
in 1899, and joined Sekondteatret
Sekondteatret
Sekondteatret was a theatre and theatre academy established in Kristiana in 1899 by Ludovica Levy and her husband Dore Lavik. Its opening performance was an adaptation of Schiller's play Mary Stuart on 25 August 1899. The theatre closed in 1900....
in its first season, until she got married. After ten years she made a comeback as actress, touring one year with Nationalturneen, and played one season with Trondhjems nationale Scene
Trondhjems nationale Scene
Trondhjems nationale Scene was a theatre that opened in Trondhjem in 1911, and closed in 1927. The theatre's first artistical director was Thora Hansson, from 1911 to 1913. The opening performance was held on 15 September 1911, with Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson's play Sigurd Jorsalfar with Grieg's music,...
. She participated in Danish films in the mid 1910s, appeared regularly at Centralteatret
Centralteatret
Centralteatret is a theatre in Akersgata, Oslo, Norway.Centralteatret was established by the Alma Isabella Bosse Fahlstrøm and Johan Peter Broust Fahlstrøm in 1897. From 1902, Harald Otto was the theater manager and owner. His son, Reidar Otto, subsequently ran it, while his son, Harald Otto...
from 1916 to 1921, and had a three years assignment as actress for Det Nye Teater
Det Nye Teater
Det Nye Teater was a theatre that opened in Oslo in 1929, and ended as an independent theatre in 1959, when it merged with Folketeatret to form Oslo Nye Teater. The theatre's original purpose was to support contemporary Norwegian drama.-History:...
from 1928.
Personal and social life
Mowinckel was born in BergenBergen
Bergen is the second largest city in Norway with a population of as of , . Bergen is the administrative centre of Hordaland county. Greater Bergen or Bergen Metropolitan Area as defined by Statistics Norway, has a population of as of , ....
as the daughter of merchant Edward Christian Mowinckel and Cornelia Schultz Blydt, and had eight siblings. She belonged to a prominent family, being a descendant of merchant Johan Ernst Mowinckel
Johan Ernst Mowinckel (born 1759)
Johan Ernst Mowinckel was a Norwegian merchant and consul from Bergen, and one of the leading persons of the city. He was the great grandfather of Prime minister Johan Ludwig Mowinckel and to actress Agnes Mowinckel. Mowinckel established the grocery Mowinckel & Co. Among the company's business...
(1759–1816). Her eldest brother Johan Ernst
Johan Ernst Mowinckel (born 1860)
Johan Ernst Mowinckel was a Norwegian merchant and politician from Bergen. He was the great grandson of Johan Ernst Mowinckel , and the brother of actress Agnes Mowinckel....
was a merchant and leading politician in Bergen, and also a member of the Norwegian Parliament for one period. Johan Ernst supported her career morally when she chose to become an actress, and later helped her financially when needed, including funding her visits to England and Paris. Her brother Harald had taken over their father's business, one of Norways largest fish exporters. Her sister Johanne Vogt was among the first women meeting at the Norwegian Parliament (as a suppleant for Henrik Ameln
Henrik Ameln
Henrik Ameln was a Norwegian jurist and politician for the Conservative Party. He was a mayor of Bergen, and served five terms in the Norwegian Parliament.-Personal life:...
).
She was a second cousin of Prime Minister
Prime Minister of Norway
The Prime Minister of Norway is the political leader of Norway and the Head of His Majesty's Government. The Prime Minister and Cabinet are collectively accountable for their policies and actions to the Sovereign, to Stortinget , to their political party, and ultimately the...
Johan Ludwig Mowinckel
Johan Ludwig Mowinckel
Johan Ludwig Mowinckel was a Norwegian political figure representing Venstre, the social liberal party. He served as Prime Minister of Norway between 1924 and 1926, again from 1928 until 1931, and finally between 1933 and 1935.Born in Bergen, he founded the shipping company A/S J. Ludwig...
, and a sister-in-law of theatre critics Gunnar Heiberg
Gunnar Heiberg
Gunnar Edvard Rode Heiberg was a Norwegian poet, playwright, journalist and theatre critic.-Personal life:...
and Sigurd Bødtker
Sigurd Bødtker
-Personal life:He was born in Trondhjem as a son of physician Fredrik Waldemar Bødtker and Sophie Jenssen . He was the brother of chemist Eyvind Bødtker, a second cousin of military officer Carl Fredrik Johannes Bødtker, log driving manager Ragnvald Bødtker and County Governor Eivind Bødtker, and...
. From 1899 to 1909 she was married to ship broker
Shipbroking
Shipbroking is a financial service, which forms part of the global shipping industry. Shipbrokers are specialist intermediaries/negotiators between shipowners and charterers who use ships to transport cargo, or between buyers and sellers of ships.Some brokerage firms have developed into large...
Hans Brecke Blehr, and had three children with him until they divorced. She later became a close friend of her brother-in-law Sigurd Bødtker, after his divorce from Blehr's sister in 1910, and they eventually lived together.
In 1917 she bought a summer house at the island Hvasser
Hvasser
Hvasser is a populated island and a village in Tjøme municipality, Norway, connected to mainland and the city of Tønsberg via the islands Brøtsø, Tjøme and Nøtterøy. The name comes from the Norwegian word "hvass", meaning sharp, which is owed to sharp cliffs on the island.Hvasser is also the pilot...
. The place was called "Abergeldie", from a name plate found on the beach and mounted above the outer door. An annex called "Sivertstua" was raised and came to be Sigurd Bødtker's residence. Her house at Hvasser was regularly visited by her friends, becoming a meeting place for painters and writers.
Early years
In 1894, when she was nineteen years old, Agnes Mowinckel travelled to KristianaOslo
Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
to take classes in drawing at Den kgl. Tegneskole
Norwegian National Academy of Craft and Art Industry
The Norwegian National Academy of Craft and Art Industry was established in 1818.In 1996 the National Academy of Craft and Art Industry became part of Oslo National Academy of the Arts .-Noted alumni:-External links:*...
. In Kristiania she became a close friend with actress Laura Gundersen
Laura Gundersen
Laura Sofie Coucheron Gundersen was a Norwegian actor, counted as the first native-born tragedienne, and also, in some aspect, as her country's first professional native actress and prima donna.-Biography:...
. She visited Laura and Sigvard Gundersen
Sigvard Gundersen
Sigvard Gundersen was a Norwegian actor. He was married to actress Laura Gundersen. He made his stage début at Christiania Theater in 1862, and worked for this theatre most of his career, until 1899.-References:...
's home several days a week, and helped with the study of plays. Laura Gundersen was the leading actress at Christiania Theatre
Christiania Theatre
Christiania Theatre, or Kristiania Theatre, was Norway's finest stage for the spoken drama between October 4, 1836 - September 1, 1899. It was located at Bankplassen by the Akershus Fortress in central Christiania, in Norway...
at the time. Mowinckel's friend from Bergen, Hans Blehr, was also in Kristiania. Together with him she visited the cafés of the city, where they joined the circle of artists, many of whom later came to be part of her social network. After one year in Kristiania she returned to Bergen. Back in Bergen she worked as a teacher at a school for girls. She also took lessons with instructor Ludovica Levy
Ludovica Levy
Ludovica Magdalena Marie Levy was a Danish actress, theatre director and theatre critic. She toured with theatres in Denmark and Norway, and worked as instructor for Den Nationale Scene in Bergen...
at Den Nationale Scene
Den Nationale Scene
Den Nationale Scene is the largest theatre in Bergen, Norway. Den Nationale Scene is also one of the oldest permanent theatre in Norway.-History:...
. She made her stage début at Den Nationale Scene on 2 January 1899, as "Anna Hielm" in Heiberg
Gunnar Heiberg
Gunnar Edvard Rode Heiberg was a Norwegian poet, playwright, journalist and theatre critic.-Personal life:...
's play Kong Midas. Her second début was as "Hjørdis" in Ibsen
Henrik Ibsen
Henrik Ibsen was a major 19th-century Norwegian playwright, theatre director, and poet. He is often referred to as "the father of prose drama" and is one of the founders of Modernism in the theatre...
's Hærmendene paa Helgeland
The Vikings at Helgeland
The Vikings at Helgeland is Henrik Ibsen's seventh play.The Vikings at Helgeland was written during 1857 and first performed at Christiania Norske Theater in Oslo on 24 November 1858. The scenes take place during the time of Erik Blood-axe in the north of Norway in historic Helgeland...
. She was offered a position at Den Nationale Scene in Bergen, but chose to join Ludovica Levy at her Sekondteater
Sekondteatret
Sekondteatret was a theatre and theatre academy established in Kristiana in 1899 by Ludovica Levy and her husband Dore Lavik. Its opening performance was an adaptation of Schiller's play Mary Stuart on 25 August 1899. The theatre closed in 1900....
in Kristiania. At Sekondteatret's first performance in August 1899 she played the character "Mary Stuart" in Schiller's play of the same name. In October she played "Anna Hielm" in Kong Midas in Kristiania. Mowinckel married Hans Blehr in October 1899. Her eldest son Hans was born in June 1900, and her daughter Karen Lisbeth in October 1901. Blehr's house at Lysaker
Lysaker
Lysaker is a section of and a postal code area of the Norwegian municipality of Bærum, just west of Oslo.Geographically, it is bordered by Lysakerelven on the east, which also forms the border to Oslo; Fornebu to the south; Stabekk to the west; and Jar to the north...
, a large house with several servants, became a meeting place for painters and writers, with Mowinckel-Blehr as hostess. Among her friends were the writers Sigurd Bødtker
Sigurd Bødtker
-Personal life:He was born in Trondhjem as a son of physician Fredrik Waldemar Bødtker and Sophie Jenssen . He was the brother of chemist Eyvind Bødtker, a second cousin of military officer Carl Fredrik Johannes Bødtker, log driving manager Ragnvald Bødtker and County Governor Eivind Bødtker, and...
, Sven Elvestad
Sven Elvestad
Sven Elvestad was a Norwegian journalist and author. He is best known for his detective stories, which were published under the pen name Stein Riverton and translated to several languages, including German and English.Elvestad was born as Kristoffer Elvestad Svendsen, in Fredrikshald , a small...
, Olaf Bull
Olaf Bull
Olaf Jacob Martin Luther Breda Bull or Olaf Bull was a Norwegian poet. He was born on November 10, 1883 in Kristiania , Norway, and died on June 29, 1933.-His life:...
, Nils Kjær
Nils Kjær
Nils Kjær was a Norwegian playwright, short story writer, essayist, literary critic and theatre critic.-Personal life:Kjær was born in Holmestrand as the son of Nils Henrik Kjær and Christine Smestad...
and Nils Collett Vogt
Nils Collett Vogt
Nils Collett Vogt was a Norwegian poet.He was born in Christiania as the son of tramway director Jens Theodor Paludan Vogt and writer Johanne Collett...
, and the painters Christian
Christian Krohg
Christian Krohg , was a Norwegian naturalist painter, illustrator, author and journalist.-Life and career:...
and Oda Krohg
Oda Krohg
Oda Krohg, born Othilia Pauline Christine Lasson , was a Norwegian painter, and the wife of her teacher and colleague Christian Krohg....
. Her first appearance at Nationaltheatret was in 1902, in a few performances when she replaced Ragna Wettergreen
Ragna Wettergreen
Ragna Wettergreen was a Norwegian actress.Born in Oslo, Norway, she made her stage début at Christiania Theatre in 1886. She performed at Christiania Theatre until it closed in 1899, and from then mainly at Nationaltheatret...
in the title role in Ibsen's Fru Inger til Østraat
Lady Inger of Oestraat
Lady Inger of Oestraat is a play by Henrik Ibsen, inspired by the life of Inger, Lady of Austraat. The play, the third work of the Norwegian's career, reflects the birth of Romantic Nationalism in the Norway of that period, and had a strongly anti-Danish sentiment...
.
Comeback in 1909
After ten years as a mother and housewife her marriage was discontinued in 1909. She found herself in a situation with no place to live, no money and no job, and with three small children. Mowinckel joined the touring theatre Nationalturneen for the 1909/1910 season, as an actress and also being responsible for the costumes. Here she played the lead character "Alaine de l'Estaile" in MichaëlisSophus Michaëlis
Sophus Michaëlis was a Danish poet, novelist and playwright. Among his works are the novels Giovanna from 1901 and Den evige søvn from 1912, and the play Revolutionsbryllup from 1906.-References:...
' play Revolusjonsbryllup , and her interpretation of the character "Mrs. Hertz" in Nathansen
Henri Nathansen
Henri Nathansen was a Danish writer and stage director, today best known for the play Inside the Walls ....
's play Daniel Hertz was well received by the critics. She was among the first staff at Trondhjems nationale Scene
Trondhjems nationale Scene
Trondhjems nationale Scene was a theatre that opened in Trondhjem in 1911, and closed in 1927. The theatre's first artistical director was Thora Hansson, from 1911 to 1913. The opening performance was held on 15 September 1911, with Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson's play Sigurd Jorsalfar with Grieg's music,...
from 1911, and stayed in Trondheim
Trondheim
Trondheim , historically, Nidaros and Trondhjem, is a city and municipality in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway. With a population of 173,486, it is the third most populous municipality and city in the country, although the fourth largest metropolitan area. It is the administrative centre of...
for one season. At the opening perforance she played the character "Borghild" in Bjørnson
Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson
Bjørnstjerne Martinius Bjørnson was a Norwegian writer and the 1903 Nobel Prize in Literature laureate. Bjørnson is considered as one of The Four Greats Norwegian writers; the others being Henrik Ibsen, Jonas Lie, and Alexander Kielland...
's Sigurd Jorsalfar, and in Ibsen
Henrik Ibsen
Henrik Ibsen was a major 19th-century Norwegian playwright, theatre director, and poet. He is often referred to as "the father of prose drama" and is one of the founders of Modernism in the theatre...
's Fruen fra havet
The Lady from the Sea
The Lady from the Sea is a play written in 1888 by Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen.Kvinnan från havet is a ballet by choreographer Birgit Cullberg, and based on Ibsen's play...
she played the character "Elida Wangel". She also played the character "Elida" at Den Nationale Scene
Den Nationale Scene
Den Nationale Scene is the largest theatre in Bergen, Norway. Den Nationale Scene is also one of the oldest permanent theatre in Norway.-History:...
in Bergen in 1912. A visit to London and Paris in 1912 was influential for her later role as stage director. In London she was influenced by Gordon Craig
Edward Gordon Craig
Edward Henry Gordon Craig , sometimes known as Gordon Craig, was an English modernist theatre practitioner; he worked as an actor, director and scenic designer, as well as developing an influential body of theoretical writings...
and his theories on theatrical design
Scenic design
Scenic design is the creation of theatrical, as well as film or television scenery. Scenic designers have traditionally come from a variety of artistic backgrounds, but nowadays, generally speaking, they are trained professionals, often with M.F.A...
, such as stage composition
Mise en scène
Mise-en-scène is an expression used to describe the design aspects of a theatre or film production, which essentially means "visual theme" or "telling a story"—both in visually artful ways through storyboarding, cinematography and stage design, and in poetically artful ways through direction...
and use of light
Stage lighting
Modern stage lighting is a flexible tool in the production of theatre, dance, opera and other performance arts. Several different types of stage lighting instruments are used in the pursuit of the various principles or goals of lighting. Stage lighting has grown considerably in recent years...
. In Paris she was particularly inspired by Charles Dullin
Charles Dullin
Charles Dullin was a French actor, theater manager and director.-Life:Dullin was a student of Jacques Copeau...
, and his way of interweaving drama with music and painting. In the 1910s she participated in a few Danish films. One of these was the short film Proletargeniet from 1914, where she played the wife of a professor. It is assumed that she participated in three or four films, but details about the other films appear to be lost.
When she returned to Kristiania and found a home at Elisenbergveien she still had contact with her social network. Her home was open for family and friends. Among the visitors were theatre critic Sigurd Bødtker, who eventually moved in with her, Olaf Bull, Nils Kjær, Helge Krog
Helge Krog
Helge Krog was a Norwegian journalist, essayist, theatre and literary critic, translator and playwright.-Personal life:...
, Ronald Fangen
Ronald Fangen
Ronald Fangen was a Norwegian novelist, essayist, playwright, psalmist, journalist and literary critic. He was born in Kragerø, and perished in a plane accident in 1946....
, Sigurd Hoel
Sigurd Hoel
Sigurd Hoel was a Norwegian author and publishing consultant, born in Nord-Odal. He debuted with the collection of short stories Veien vi gaar in 1922...
, Nini Roll Anker
Nini Roll Anker
Nini Roll Anker was a Norwegian novelist and playwright. She was born in Molde, as the daughter of stipendiary magistrate and later member of parliament and minister Ferdinand Nicolai Roll. She was married twice, first to land owner Peter Martin Anker, and later to engineer Johan August Anker...
, Oda Krohg, Hulda Garborg
Hulda Garborg
Hulda Garborg was a Norwegian writer, novelist, playwright, poet, folk dancer, and theatre instructor...
, Sigrid Undset
Sigrid Undset
Sigrid Undset was a Norwegian novelist who was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1928.-Biography:Undset was born in Kalundborg, Denmark, but her family moved to Norway when she was two years old. In 1924, she converted to Catholicism and became a lay Dominican...
, Jens Thiis
Jens Thiis
Jens Thiis was a Norwegian art historian, conservator and a prominent museum director. He was conservator at Nordenfjeldske Kunstindustrimuseum in Trondheim 1895 and director at Nasjonalgalleriet in Oslo 1908–1941.He was unusual alert to tendencies of his time...
and Sven Elvestad. The group regularly met at the restaurant Anden Etage at Hotel Continental
Hotel Continental, Oslo
Hotel Continental is a hotel in Oslo, Norway, that opened in 1900.The background story of the Continental is like an old fairytale, about a young couple, who through their hard work and entrepreneurship created a monument that will live for many years. It all started in Sweden in 1860, with the...
. She was always carefully dressed, often with self-designed costumes and hats.
At Centralteatret in 1916 she played the title character in Jan Fabricius' play Fru Ynske, and the character "Rosa Mamai" in Daudet
Alphonse Daudet
Alphonse Daudet was a French novelist. He was the father of Léon Daudet and Lucien Daudet.- Early life :Alphonse Daudet was born in Nîmes, France. His family, on both sides, belonged to the bourgeoisie. The father, Vincent Daudet, was a silk manufacturer — a man dogged through life by misfortune...
's play L'Arlésienne. In 1917 she played the character "Anna Hielm" at Centralteatret, in Kong Midas. Her interpretation of "Mrs. Alving" in Ibsen
Henrik Ibsen
Henrik Ibsen was a major 19th-century Norwegian playwright, theatre director, and poet. He is often referred to as "the father of prose drama" and is one of the founders of Modernism in the theatre...
's Ghosts
Ghosts (play)
Ghosts is a play by the Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen. It was written in 1881 and first staged in 1882.Like many of Ibsen's better-known plays, Ghosts is a scathing commentary on 19th century morality....
at Centralteatret in 1919 was praised by the critics. The 1924 edition of the encyclopedia Salmonsens Konversationsleksikon
Salmonsens Konversationsleksikon
Salmonsens Konversationsleksikon is a Danish encyclopedia that has been published in several editions.The first edition, Salmonsens Store Illustrerede Konversationsleksikon was published in nineteen volumes 1893-1911 by Brødrene Salmonsens Forlag, and named after the publisher Isaac Salmonsen...
mentions "Mrs. Alving" among her best roles. In 1921, her performance of the title character in Ibsen's Fru Inger til Østraat
Lady Inger of Oestraat
Lady Inger of Oestraat is a play by Henrik Ibsen, inspired by the life of Inger, Lady of Austraat. The play, the third work of the Norwegian's career, reflects the birth of Romantic Nationalism in the Norway of that period, and had a strongly anti-Danish sentiment...
at Centralteatret was a popular success, garnering praise in critical reviews.
Stage director from 1922
In 1922 Mowinckel staged an adaptation of WedekindFrank Wedekind
Benjamin Franklin Wedekind , usually known as Frank Wedekind, was a German playwright...
's play Spring Awakening at Intimteatret. The performance was well received by the public, with standing ovations. This was the first time Munch
Edvard Munch
Edvard Munch was a Norwegian Symbolist painter, printmaker and an important forerunner of expressionist art. His best-known composition, The Scream, is part of a series The Frieze of Life, in which Munch explored the themes of love, fear, death, melancholia, and anxiety.- Childhood :Edvard Munch...
's paintings were used at a Norwegian stage. In a retrospective article from 1939 Anton Rønneberg
Anton Rønneberg
Anton Johan Rønneberg was a Norwegian writer, theatre critic, dramaturg and theatre director.Rønneberg was a theatre critic for several Oslo newspapers: Norges Kommunistblad in 1924, Middagsavisen from 1925 to 1927, Morgenbladet from 1928 to 1930 and Aftenposten...
characterized this event as an important day in the history of Norwegian theatre. He pointed at her artistic eye for the stage setting, and for the harmony between stage decorations, costumes, light and choreography.
Mowinckel produced a total of 28 plays for Det Norske Teatret
Det Norske Teatret
Det Norske Teatret is a theatre in Oslo. The theatre was founded in 1912, after an initiative from Hulda Garborg and Edvard Drabløs. It opened in 1913, touring with two plays, Ervingen by Ivar Aasen and Rationelt Fjøsstell by Hulda Garborg...
. Johan Borgen
Johan Borgen
Johan Collett Müller Borgen was a Norwegian author, journalist and critic. He was married to Annemarta Borgen. Under the pseudonym of Mumle Gåsegg he wrote shorter articles in the newspaper Dagbladet, particularly during World War II...
acknowledged Mowinckel particularly for her introduction of recent European drama to Det Norske Teatret. Her first production was Myrkemakti
The Power of Darkness
The Power of Darkness is a five-act drama by Leo Tolstoy. Written in 1886, the play was banned in Russia until 1902.The central character is a peasant, Nikita, who seduces and abandons a young girl Marinka; then the lovely Anisija murders her own husband to marry Nikita. He impregnates his new...
by Tolstoi in February 1923, after which she was appointed as stage instructor for Det Norske Teatret for a period of two years. She produced Lagerlöf
Selma Lagerlöf
Selma Ottilia Lovisa Lagerlöf was a Swedish author. She was the first female writer to win the Nobel Prize in Literature, and most widely known for her children's book Nils Holgerssons underbara resa genom Sverige ....
's play Keisaren av Portugalia in April 1923, Lenormand's play Raudtind in October, and Skjoldborg
Johan Skjoldborg
Johan Skjoldborg was a Danish novelist, playwright and memoirist. Among his works are the novel En Stridsmand from 1896, the play Slægten from 1925, and the two volumes Min Mindebog from 1934/1935.-Further reading:...
's Mikkel Larsen-gutane in October 1923. Her direction of Tu
Torvald Tu
Torvald Tu was a Norwegian poet, playwright, novelist and writer of humoresques.He was born in Klepp as a son of farmers. His literary debut was the 1914 play Storbrekkmyri, and his first poetry collection Blomar fraa heid came in 1915. He wrote in Nynorsk with strong hints of his own Jæren dialect...
's comedy Kjærleik på Lykteland in December 1923 came to be one of the greatest box-office successes at the theatre. In January 1924 she played the title role in Ibsen's Fru Inger til Østråt. In March of the same year she produced Rytter
Henrik Rytter
Henrik Grytnes Rytter was a Norwegian dramatist, lyricist and translator.He was born in Bjørnør. He made his debut in 1907, with the drama Dømde. Later plays include Bråhamaren , Herman Ravn , Våren , Elva and Prestegarden og øya . All were staged at Det Norske Teatret...
's Herman Ravn, in April Ørjasæter
Tore Ørjasæter
Tore "Spencer Brown" Ørjasæter was a Norwegian poet.The son of a teacher, he attended folk high school and qualified as a teacher before becoming a writer....
's début play Jo Gjende, and in October Capek
Karel Capek
Karel Čapek was Czech writer of the 20th century.-Biography:Born in 1890 in the Bohemian mountain village of Malé Svatoňovice to an overbearing, emotional mother and a distant yet adored father, Čapek was the youngest of three siblings...
's R.U.R.. In November 1924 she both produced and played the main character in Nexö's Dangardsfolket. In 1924 Mowinckel staged Crommelynck
Fernand Crommelynck
Fernand Crommelynck was a Belgian dramatist. He was born into a family of actors, the child of a French mother and a Belgian father and he himself was also an actor...
's play Den praktfulde hanrei (in ) at Det Frie Teater. This was actress Tore Løkkeberg
Tore Segelcke
Tore Dyveke Segelcke was a Norwegian actress.She was the sister of Georg Løkkeberg; and married from 1927-42 to her colleague Lasse Segelcke, and from 1945-1959 to Dr Anton Raabe.She made her debut in 1921 touring with Det Norske Teatret where she was based until 1924...
's first sensation, when she played the character "Stella", exposing her bare breast. In February 1925 she produced Gullvåg
Olav Gullvåg
Olav Gullvåg was a Norwegian playwright, novelist, poet and editor.He was born in Trondheim. He worked as editor-in-chief of Søndmøre Folkeblad from 1911 to 1912, Norig from 1912 to 1921 and Gula Tidend from 1921 to 1929...
's historical play Den lange notti for Det Norske Teatret.
Nationaltheatret 1925–1926
In 1925 Mowinckel was contracted by theatre director BjørnsonBjørn Bjørnson
Bjørn Bjørnson was a Norwegian stage actor and theatre director.-Biography:He was born in Kristiania, the son of author Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson and his wife Karoline Bjørnson. In 1876, he was admitted as a student at the Stern Conservatory operated by Julius Stern in Berlin, Germany...
as a permanent stage director for Nationaltheatret
Nationaltheatret
The National Theatre in Oslo is one of Norway's largest and most prominent venues for performance of dramatic arts.The theatre had its first performance on 1 September 1899 but can trace its origins to Christiania Theatre, which was founded in 1829...
. This decision was apparently not popular among the veteran actors. Her first production was a success, an adaptaton of Vane
Sutton Vane
Sutton Vane was a British playwright best known work for Outward Bound , which was filmed twice and was still being performed eight decades after its premiere.- Career as actor :...
's play Outward Bound (translated as ), staged in September 1925. Her next effort turned into a disaster, when she was asked to stage Ibsen's play Little Eyolf
Little Eyolf
Little Eyolf is an 1894 play by Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen. The play was first performed on January 12, 1895 in the Deutsches Theater in Berlin.-Plot:...
, and primadonna Johanne Dybwad
Johanne Dybwad (actor)
Johanne Dybwad was a Norwegian stage actress and stage producer. She was the leading actress in Norwegian theatre for half a century.-Early and personal life:...
, who played one of the roles, refused to cooperate. The play was then dropped from the repertoire. In January 1926 she staged Bergman
Hjalmar Bergman
Hjalmar Fredrik Elgérus Bergman was a Swedish writer and playwright.The son of a banker in Örebro, Bergman briefly studied philosophy at Uppsala University but soon broke off his studies and took up the life of a free writer. He married Stina Lindberg, the daughter of actor and stage producer...
's Swedenhielms, and in March 1926 Christiansen
Sigurd Christiansen
Sigurd Christiansen was a Norwegian novelist and playwright. He made his literary debut with the novel Seierherrene in 1915....
's Edmund Jahr. Her production of Shaw
George Bernard Shaw
George Bernard Shaw was an Irish playwright and a co-founder of the London School of Economics. Although his first profitable writing was music and literary criticism, in which capacity he wrote many highly articulate pieces of journalism, his main talent was for drama, and he wrote more than 60...
's play Jeanne d'Arc
Saint Joan (play)
Saint Joan is a play by George Bernard Shaw, based on the life and trial of Joan of Arc. Published not long after the canonization of Joan of Arc by the Roman Catholic Church, the play dramatises what is known of her life based on the substantial records of her trial. Shaw studied the transcripts...
in November 1926, in which opera singer Cally Monrad
Cally Monrad
Cally Monrad was a Norwegian singer, actress and poet. She was particularly known as a concert and opera singer. She was a member of the Nazi party Nasjonal Samling, and theatre director at Det Norske Teatret from 1942 to 1945, during the German occupation of Norway. She was sentenced to one year...
played the title role, was not as successful as expected. In the aftermath, influential staff members at the theatre blamed Mowinckel for the debacle, and asked theatre director Bjørnson
Bjørn Bjørnson
Bjørn Bjørnson was a Norwegian stage actor and theatre director.-Biography:He was born in Kristiania, the son of author Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson and his wife Karoline Bjørnson. In 1876, he was admitted as a student at the Stern Conservatory operated by Julius Stern in Berlin, Germany...
to dismiss her from her position as stage director. Mowinckel was allowed leave the same day, and released from her contract for the next season. Bjørnson himself resigned from his position a half year later. It would be seven years before she gained her next assignment for Nationaltheatret.
Theatre director at Balkongen 1927–1928
After the incidents at Nationaltheatret Mowinckel started her own theatre in 1927, called BalkongenBalkongen
Balkongen was an avant-garde theatre in Oslo established in 1927 and disestablished in 1928. Founder and artistical director was Agnes Mowinckel....
. It was located in Brødrene Hals' old concert hall, which had formerly been used by the revue theatre Chat Noir
Chat Noir
Chat Noir is a cabaret and revue theatre in Oslo, Norway. It was established in 1912 by Bokken Lasson. The current director is Tom Sterri.-Establishment:...
. The first production was Aleichem's play Hevnens gud. Other productions were Langer
František Langer
František Langer , was a Czech playwright, military physician, script writer, essayist, literary critic and publicist. He was born and died in Prague.- Life :...
's play Periferi , Kaus
Gina Kaus
Gina Kaus, née Regina Wiener was an Austrian-American novelist and screenwriter.-Biography:...
' play Toni, Ansky
S. Ansky
Shloyme Zanvl Rappoport , known by his pseudonym S. Ansky , was a Russian Jewish author, playwright, and researcher of Jewish folklore....
's Dybuk, Ibsen's Fruen fra havet
The Lady from the Sea
The Lady from the Sea is a play written in 1888 by Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen.Kvinnan från havet is a ballet by choreographer Birgit Cullberg, and based on Ibsen's play...
, and the first stage production of Obstfelder
Sigbjørn Obstfelder
Sigbjørn Obstfelder , was a Norwegian writer.Primarily known as a writer of poetry, Obstfelder's debut collection of poems from 1893, Digte , is usually credited as one of the earliest examples of modernism in Norwegian literature...
's De røde draaber.
Late 1920s and 1930s
Mowinckel played "Lady Inger" at Centralteatret for the Ibsen jubilée in 1928. In May 1928 she produced VesaasTarjei Vesaas
[Tarjei Vesaas was a Norwegian poet and novelist. Born in Vinje, Telemark, Vesaas is widely considered to be one of Norway's greatest writers of the twentieth century and perhaps its most important since World War II....
' play Frå fest til fest for Det Norske Teatret, and O'Casey
Seán O'Casey
Seán O'Casey was an Irish dramatist and memoirist. A committed socialist, he was the first Irish playwright of note to write about the Dublin working classes.- Early life:...
's Plogen og stjernone in September 1929. She played the male character "Thy" in Hamsun
Knut Hamsun
Knut Hamsun was a Norwegian author, who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1920. He was praised by King Haakon VII of Norway as Norway's soul....
's Livets Spill at the opening performance at Det Nye Teater
Det Nye Teater
Det Nye Teater was a theatre that opened in Oslo in 1929, and ended as an independent theatre in 1959, when it merged with Folketeatret to form Oslo Nye Teater. The theatre's original purpose was to support contemporary Norwegian drama.-History:...
in February 1929, and directed and played in Ibsen's Et dukkehjem
A Doll's House
A Doll's House is a three-act play in prose by the Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen. It premièred at the Royal Theatre in Copenhagen, Denmark, on 21 December 1879, having been published earlier that month....
for Det Nye Teater in 1929. In 1931 she staged Stuart's comedy Fra ni til seks at Centralteatret
Centralteatret
Centralteatret is a theatre in Akersgata, Oslo, Norway.Centralteatret was established by the Alma Isabella Bosse Fahlstrøm and Johan Peter Broust Fahlstrøm in 1897. From 1902, Harald Otto was the theater manager and owner. His son, Reidar Otto, subsequently ran it, while his son, Harald Otto...
. At Det Norske Teatret in March 1931 she staged an adaptation of Frank
Leonhard Frank
Leonhard Frank was a German expressionist writer. He studied painting and graphic art in Munich, and gained acclaim with his first novel, The Robber Band...
's Carl and Anna, in October O'Neill
Eugene O'Neill
Eugene Gladstone O'Neill was an American playwright and Nobel laureate in Literature. His poetically titled plays were among the first to introduce into American drama techniques of realism earlier associated with Russian playwright Anton Chekhov, Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen, and Swedish...
's Alle Guds born har vengjer
All God's Chillun Got Wings (play)
All God's Chillun Got Wings was a 1924 play by Eugene O'Neill about miscegenation.Paul Robeson performed in the premiere, in which he portrayed the black husband of an abusive white woman who, resenting her husband's skin colour, destroys his promising career as a lawyer.-Performances:Trish Van...
, and in November 1931 Soini
Yrjö Soini
Yrjö Soini was a Finnish novelist....
's Syndebukken. In February 1932 she produced Braaten
Oskar Braaten
Oskar Braaten was a Norwegian novelist and playwright.-Biography:Oskar Alexander Braaten was born in Sagene, a borough of the city of Oslo. Sagene was one of Norway's oldest industrial areas dating to the mid-19th century. Oskar Braaten attended school in Sagene until he was 15 years old...
's adaptation of Zuckmayer
Carl Zuckmayer
Carl Zuckmayer was a German writer and playwright.-Biography:Born in Nackenheim in Rheinhessen, he was four years old when his family moved to Mainz. With the outbreak of World War I, he finished school with a facilitated "emergency"-Abitur and volunteered for military service...
's play . As advertising they let German "soldiers" patrol the streets, which led to official protests from the German Embassy in Oslo. In May 1932 she produced Martinez Sierra
Gregorio Martínez Sierra
Gregorio Martínez Sierra , Spanish writer, dramatist and theatre director.A key figure in the revival of the Spanish theatrical avant-garde in the early twentieth century, Gregorio Martínez Sierra was one of the few progressive dramatists whose productions achieved any measure of commercial...
's play Dei spanske nonnone , in September Langer
František Langer
František Langer , was a Czech playwright, military physician, script writer, essayist, literary critic and publicist. He was born and died in Prague.- Life :...
's Kamelen gjennom nålauga , and in October 1932 Drabløs
Edvard Drabløs
Edvard Drabløs was a Norwegian actor and theatre director.He was born in Sykkylven. He worked most of his life at Det Norske Teatret, from 1912. He was the director of this theatre from 1915 to 1916 and 1950 to 1951. He also appeared briefly in films.He was proclaimed Knight, First Class of the...
' adaptation of Falkberget
Johan Falkberget
Johan Falkberget, born Johan Petter Lillebakken, was a Norwegian author.-Life and career:Johan Falkberget was born on the Falkberget farm in the Rugldal valley in the Norwegian copper mining municipality of Røros.In 1891, he began to write his Christianus Sextus trilogy, though it was not...
's Eli Sjursdotter. In February 1933 she produced Glebov's Under Sovjet, and in December Ørjasæter's Anne på Torp. In 1933 she staged Gjesdahl
Paul Gjesdahl
Paul Gjesdahl was a Norwegian journalist and theatre critic. He was a theatre critic for the newspaper Dagbladet from 1919 to 1930, for Tidens Tegn from 1930 to 1937, and for Arbeiderbladet from 1937 to 1967....
's adaptation of Winsloe
Christa Winsloe
Christa Winsloe was a 20th century German-Hungarian novelist, playwright and sculptor, best known for her play Gestern und heute, filmed in 1931 as Mädchen in Uniform and the 1958 remake.- Biography :...
's play Gestern und heute at Det Nye Teater, a performance which made a strong impression on the public.
Mowinckel's next commission for Nationaltheatret after the incident in 1927 was her production of Oneill
Eugene O'Neill
Eugene Gladstone O'Neill was an American playwright and Nobel laureate in Literature. His poetically titled plays were among the first to introduce into American drama techniques of realism earlier associated with Russian playwright Anton Chekhov, Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen, and Swedish...
's comedy Ah, Wilderness! (in ) in March 1934. This was the first European production of the comedy. From then she more or less regularly guested the theatre. Among her productions are Ibsen's John Gabriel Borkman
John Gabriel Borkman
John Gabriel Borkman is the penultimate composition of the Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen, written in 1896.-Plot:The Borkman family fortunes have been brought low by the imprisonment of John Gabriel who used his position as a bank manager to illegally speculate with his investors' money...
and Rosmersholm
Rosmersholm
Rosmersholm is a play written in 1886 by Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen. In the estimation of many critics the piece is Ibsen's masterwork, only equalled by The Wild Duck of 1884...
, Bjørnson
Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson
Bjørnstjerne Martinius Bjørnson was a Norwegian writer and the 1903 Nobel Prize in Literature laureate. Bjørnson is considered as one of The Four Greats Norwegian writers; the others being Henrik Ibsen, Jonas Lie, and Alexander Kielland...
's Paul Lange og Tora Parsberg, Skram
Amalie Skram
Amalie Skram was a Norwegian author and feminist who gave voice to a woman's point of view with her naturalist writing. She moved to Denmark in 1894 where she settled in Copenhagen with her husband, the Danish writer Erik Skram...
's Agnete, and plays by Pirandello
Luigi Pirandello
Luigi Pirandello was an Italian dramatist, novelist, and short story writer awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1934, for his "bold and brilliant renovation of the drama and the stage." Pirandello's works include novels, hundreds of short stories, and about 40 plays, some of which are written...
, Borgen
Johan Borgen
Johan Collett Müller Borgen was a Norwegian author, journalist and critic. He was married to Annemarta Borgen. Under the pseudonym of Mumle Gåsegg he wrote shorter articles in the newspaper Dagbladet, particularly during World War II...
, Grieg and Abell
Kjeld Abell
Kjeld Abell was a Danish playwright and theatrical designer. Born in Ribe, Denmark, Abell's first designs were seen in ballets directed by George Balanchine at Copenhagen's Royal Danish Theatre and London's Alhambra Theatre....
In April 1935 she produced Gorky
Maxim Gorky
Alexei Maximovich Peshkov , primarily known as Maxim Gorky , was a Russian and Soviet author, a founder of the Socialist Realism literary method and a political activist.-Early years:...
's Jegor Bulytsjov at Det Norske Teatret, the first staged production of this play outside the Soviet Union, and in October 1935 she produced Hoprekstad
Olav Hoprekstad
Olav Ragnvaldsson Hoprekstad was a Norwegian educator, playwright, theatre critic and literary critic.-Personal life:...
's historical comedy Jarlen. She played the title character in Munk
Kaj Munk
Kaj Harald Leininger Munk was a Danish playwright and Lutheran pastor, known for his cultural engagement and his martyrdom during the Occupation of Denmark of World War II...
's play Diktatorinnen at Nationaltheatret
Nationaltheatret
The National Theatre in Oslo is one of Norway's largest and most prominent venues for performance of dramatic arts.The theatre had its first performance on 1 September 1899 but can trace its origins to Christiania Theatre, which was founded in 1829...
in 1939.
Second World War
In January 1941 Mowinckel staged Ørjasæter's play Jo Gjende at Det Norske Teatret. She played the character "Merete Beyer" in Wiers-JenssenHans Wiers-Jenssen
Hans Wiers-Jenssen was a Norwegian novelist, playwright, stage producer and theatre historian. Wiers-Jenssen was employed at the theatres Christiania Theatre, Nationaltheatret and Den Nationale Scene.-Personal life:...
's play Anne Pedersdotter
Anne Pedersdotter (play)
Anne Pedersdotter is a play written in 1908 by Norwegian playwright Hans Wiers-Jenssen...
at Nationaltheatret in February 1941. She staged Kielland
Alexander Kielland
Alexander Lange Kielland was one of the most famous Norwegian realistic writers of the 19th century. He is one of the so-called "The Four Greats" in Norwegian literature, along with Henrik Ibsen, Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson and Jonas Lie.-Background:Born in Stavanger, Norway, he grew up in a rich...
's comedy Tre Par for Nationaltheatret in April 1941. Tre par was the last performance before the Nazi authorities took over the management of Nationaltheatret. In January 1942 she produced Wessel
Johan Herman Wessel
thumb|Johan Herman WesselJohan Herman Wessel was a Norwegian-Danish poet. Some of his satirical poems are still popular.-Biography:...
's Kiærlighed uden strømper and in February Wiers-Jenssen
Hans Wiers-Jenssen
Hans Wiers-Jenssen was a Norwegian novelist, playwright, stage producer and theatre historian. Wiers-Jenssen was employed at the theatres Christiania Theatre, Nationaltheatret and Den Nationale Scene.-Personal life:...
's Anne Pedersdotter
Anne Pedersdotter (play)
Anne Pedersdotter is a play written in 1908 by Norwegian playwright Hans Wiers-Jenssen...
for Trøndelag Teater
Trøndelag Teater
Trøndelag Teater is a large theater in the city of Trondheim, in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway.-Background:Trøndelag Teater stages large-scale dance and musical performances. Originally built in 1816, the theater is the oldest stage in Scandinavia in continuous use...
. In October 1942 she staged Kinck
Hans E. Kinck
Hans Ernst Kinck was a Norwegian author and philologist who wrote novels, short stories, dramas, and essays.He was born in Øksfjord in Loppa, Finnmark, where his father was the local health inspector. He died in Oslo....
's play Agilulf den vise at the Det Norske Teatret, the last production before theatre director Hergel
Knut Hergel
Knut Hergel was a Norwegian actor and theatre director.Hergel was actor at Stavanger Theater from 1924 to 1926, and at the theatre in Trondheim from 1926 to 1927. He was employed as stage producer at Det Nye Teater from 1928 to 1935...
fled the country to escape the German occupation.
Post war period
In 1945 Mowinckel helped Jens BollingJens Bolling
Jens Bolling was a Norwegian actor and theatre director. He was among the founders of Studioteatret, and a well-known interpreter of Norwegian fairy-tales.-Early and personal life:...
with preparations for Studioteatret
Studioteatret
Studioteatret is a former Norwegian theatre. It opened in 1945, shortly after the liberation, with Claes Gill as its first theatre director. Studioteatret is regarded as one of the earliest post-war artistic expressions in Norway, and most of its members later played important roles in Norwegian...
's first production, an adaptation of Wilder
Thornton Wilder
Thornton Niven Wilder was an American playwright and novelist. He received three Pulitzer Prizes, one for his novel The Bridge of San Luis Rey and two for his plays Our Town and The Skin of Our Teeth, and a National Book Award for his novel The Eighth Day.-Early years:Wilder was born in Madison,...
's play The Long Christmas Dinner
The Long Christmas Dinner
The Long Christmas Dinner is a play in one act written by American novelist and playwright Thornton Wilder in 1931. In its first published form, it was included in the volume The Long Christmas Dinner and Other Plays in One Act.-Characters:...
, but she did not want to be credited. The play premiered in Oslo on 15 June 1945, and was well received by the critic. In October 1945 she produced Ibsen's Fru Inger til Østråt for Trøndelag Teater
Trøndelag Teater
Trøndelag Teater is a large theater in the city of Trondheim, in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway.-Background:Trøndelag Teater stages large-scale dance and musical performances. Originally built in 1816, the theater is the oldest stage in Scandinavia in continuous use...
, the theatre's first production after the occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany
Occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany
The occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany started with the German invasion of Norway on April 9, 1940, and ended on May 8, 1945, after the capitulation of German forces in Europe. Throughout this period, Norway was continuously occupied by the Wehrmacht...
. The opening performance was held on 2 October, and Mowinckel also played the character "Inger Gyldenløve". On 6 October a memorial performance was held in memory of Henry Gleditsch
Henry Gleditsch
Henry Cochrane Williamsen Gleditsch was a Norwegian actor and theatre director.He was born in Kristiania. In his young days he participated in skiing for SFK Lyn....
, with the presence of the Crown Prince
Olav V of Norway
Olav V was the king of Norway from 1957 until his death. A member of the House of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg, Olav was born in the United Kingdom as the son of King Haakon VII of Norway and Queen Maud of Norway...
, the Crown Princess
Princess Märtha of Sweden
Princess Märtha of Sweden , full name Märtha Sofia Lovisa Dagmar Thyra was the granddaughter of King Oscar II of Sweden and the consort of Crown Prince Olav of Norway . She was the first Crown Princess of Norway in modern times who was not also Crown Princess of Sweden or Denmark...
and family members of victims from the extrajudicial executions in 1942. Mowinckel contributed by reading Grieg's poem "Årsdagen". In February 1946 she directed Wilder's play Our Town
Our Town
Our Town is a three-act play by American playwright Thornton Wilder. It is a character story about an average town's citizens in the early twentieth century as depicted through their everyday lives...
for Studioteatret. The play was well received both by the critics and the public. During the summer 1946 the theatre toured Northern Troms
Troms
or Romsa is a county in North Norway, bordering Finnmark to the northeast and Nordland in the southwest. To the south is Norrbotten Län in Sweden and further southeast is a shorter border with Lapland Province in Finland. To the west is the Norwegian Sea...
and Finnmark
Finnmark
or Finnmárku is a county in the extreme northeast of Norway. By land it borders Troms county to the west, Finland to the south and Russia to the east, and by water, the Norwegian Sea to the northwest, and the Barents Sea to the north and northeast.The county was formerly known as Finmarkens...
, which had been severely damaged during the war, and they played Our Town at 26 different sites. In May 1947 Mowinckel staged Sartre
Jean-Paul Sartre
Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre was a French existentialist philosopher, playwright, novelist, screenwriter, political activist, biographer, and literary critic. He was one of the leading figures in 20th century French philosophy, particularly Marxism, and was one of the key figures in literary...
's play The Respectful Prostitute
The Respectful Prostitute
The Respectful Prostitute is a French play by Jean-Paul Sartre, written in 1946, which observes a woman, a prostitute, caught up in a racially tense period of American history. The audience understands that there has been an incident on a train with said woman involved, but also a black man of...
for Studioteatret, with Merete Skavlan
Merete Skavlan
Merete Skavlan is a Norwegian actress, theatre instructor and director.She was the daughter of newspaper editor and theatre director Einar Skavlan and music educator Margrethe Bartholdy....
as a successful prostitute "Lizzie". She played the character "Bernanda" in an adaptation of Lorca
Federico García Lorca
Federico del Sagrado Corazón de Jesús García Lorca was a Spanish poet, dramatist and theatre director. García Lorca achieved international recognition as an emblematic member of the Generation of '27. He is believed to be one of thousands who were summarily shot by anti-communist death squads...
's La casa de Bernarda Alba in 1947, staged by Gerda Ring
Gerda Ring
Gerda Ring was a Norwegian stage actor and stage producer. She was the daughter of writer Barbra Ring, and married actor and theatre director Halfdan Christensen in 1922...
. In December 1948 she staged Abell
Kjeld Abell
Kjeld Abell was a Danish playwright and theatrical designer. Born in Ribe, Denmark, Abell's first designs were seen in ballets directed by George Balanchine at Copenhagen's Royal Danish Theatre and London's Alhambra Theatre....
's play Dager på en sky at Nationaltheatret, and also played the character "Hera". In January 1949 she directed Strindberg
August Strindberg
Johan August Strindberg was a Swedish playwright, novelist, poet, essayist and painter. A prolific writer who often drew directly on his personal experience, Strindberg's career spanned four decades, during which time he wrote over 60 plays and more than 30 works of fiction, autobiography,...
's Dødsdansen
The Dance of Death (play)
The Dance of Death is a play in two parts written by August Strindberg in 1900.-Plot:In Part I, Edgar and his wife Alice live in a granite fortress on a desolate island. Bored and embittered, they torment each other with petty intrigues and well-worn accusations...
at Det Norske Teatret. When she was in her 75th year she played the character "Thalia" in Abell's Dronning går igjen at Nationaltheatret, a play written specifically for her. A gala performance was held for her on 1 December, as a late celebration of her 50th anniversary as actress. In May 1950 she staged Ibsen's Kongsemnerne
The Pretenders (play)
The Pretenders is a dramatic play by Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen.-Play overview:The Pretenders was written in bursts during 1863, but Ibsen claims to have had sources and the idea back in 1858. A five-act play in prose set in the thirteenth-century. The play opened at the old Christiania...
for Oslo's millennium celebration. She staged Eliot
T. S. Eliot
Thomas Stearns "T. S." Eliot OM was a playwright, literary critic, and arguably the most important English-language poet of the 20th century. Although he was born an American he moved to the United Kingdom in 1914 and was naturalised as a British subject in 1927 at age 39.The poem that made his...
's play Cocktail Party
The Cocktail Party
The Cocktail Party is a play by T. S. Eliot. Elements of the play are based on Alcestis, by the Ancient Greek playwright Euripides. The play was the most popular of Eliot's seven plays in his lifetime, although his 1935 play, Murder in the Cathedral, is better remembered today.The Cocktail Party...
at Nationalteatret in April 1951, and Shaw
George Bernard Shaw
George Bernard Shaw was an Irish playwright and a co-founder of the London School of Economics. Although his first profitable writing was music and literary criticism, in which capacity he wrote many highly articulate pieces of journalism, his main talent was for drama, and he wrote more than 60...
's play Caesar and Cleopatra
Caesar and Cleopatra (play)
Caesar and Cleopatra, a play written in 1898 by George Bernard Shaw, was first staged in 1901 and first published with Captain Brassbound's Conversion and The Devil's Disciple in his 1901 collection, Three Plays for Puritans. It was first performed at Newcastle-on-Tyne on March 15, 1899...
in November 1951. She directed the opening performance at Folketeatret
Folketeatret
Folketeatret is a theatre in Oslo, Norway. The building has existed longer than the theatre, and been used as a movie theatre and opera house....
in 1952, Heiberg
Gunnar Heiberg
Gunnar Edvard Rode Heiberg was a Norwegian poet, playwright, journalist and theatre critic.-Personal life:...
's play Tante Ulrikke. In May 1953 she staged Schiller
Friedrich Schiller
Johann Christoph Friedrich von Schiller was a German poet, philosopher, historian, and playwright. During the last seventeen years of his life , Schiller struck up a productive, if complicated, friendship with already famous and influential Johann Wolfgang von Goethe...
's Maria Stuart at Nationaltheatret, at a gala performance for the official visit by Queen Juliana of the Netherlands
Juliana of the Netherlands
Juliana was the Queen regnant of the Kingdom of the Netherlands between 1948 and 1980. She was the only child of Queen Wilhelmina and Prince Henry...
. She staged the first production of Stenersen
Rolf Stenersen
Rolf Kristian Eckersberg Stenersen was a Norwegian track and field athlete, businessman, art collector, non-fiction writer, essayist, novelist, playwright and biographer.-Personal life:...
's Eva og Johannes at Nationalteatret in November 1953. In September 1954 she staged Ibsen's En Folkefiende
An Enemy of the People
An Enemy of the People is an 1882 play by Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen. Ibsen wrote it in response to the public outcry against his play Ghosts, which at that time was considered scandalous...
at Trøndelag Teater. In January 1955 Havrevold
Finn Havrevold
Finn Havrevold was a Norwegian novelist, short story writer, children's writer, playwright, illustrator and theatre critic.-Personal life:...
's new play Uretten was staged by Mowinckel at Nationalteatret, and the play resulted in a fierce debate on women's rights. In May 1956 she produced Ibsen
Henrik Ibsen
Henrik Ibsen was a major 19th-century Norwegian playwright, theatre director, and poet. He is often referred to as "the father of prose drama" and is one of the founders of Modernism in the theatre...
's play Lille Eyolf
Little Eyolf
Little Eyolf is an 1894 play by Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen. The play was first performed on January 12, 1895 in the Deutsches Theater in Berlin.-Plot:...
. Her last stage appearance was in 1963, when she performed as the aging "Camilla Collett
Camilla Collett
Jacobine Camilla Collett was a Norwegian writer, often referred to as the first Norwegian feminist. She was also the younger sister of Norwegian poet Henrik Wergeland, and is recognized as being one of the first contributors to realism in Norwegian literature...
" at Oslo Nye Teater
Oslo Nye Teater
Oslo Nye Teater in Oslo is one of Norway's most visited theatres.The theatre opened in 1959 as a merge between Det Nye Teater and Folketeatret, and consists of four stages; Oslo Nye Hovedscenen, Oslo Nye Centralteatret, Oslo Nye Trikkestallen and Oslo Nye Caféscenen.-External links:*...
.
Legacy
Several artists created portraits of Mowinckel that are on public display. In the Theatercafeen in Oslo a portrait by Henrik LundHenrik Lund (painter)
Henrik Louis Lund was a Norwegian painter and graphic artist.He was born in Bergen as a son of lieutenant colonel Henrik Louis Bull Lund and pianist Birgitte Charlotte Carlsen . His sister was composer Signe Lund. He spent much of his young days at sea, and probably had a naval career in mind...
once hung on the wall beside the entrance, but it was later moved to a less prominent position. A Christian Krohg
Christian Krohg
Christian Krohg , was a Norwegian naturalist painter, illustrator, author and journalist.-Life and career:...
portrait is located in the National Gallery of Norway
National Gallery of Norway
The National Gallery of Norway is a gallery in Oslo, Norway. Since 2003 it is administratively a part of the National Museum of Art, Architecture and Design.-History:...
. Henrik Sørensen
Henrik Sørensen
-Personal life:Sørensen was born in Fryksände in Sweden as a son of Severin Sørensen and Helene Høibraaten. He was married to Gudrun Klewe, and is father of physicist Sven Oluf Sørensen.-Painting career:...
's painting is at Den Nationale Scene in Bergen, and a portrait by Kai Fjell
Kai Fjell
Kai Breder Fjell was a Norwegian painter, printmaker and scenographer.- Biography :Fjell was born on a farm in the village Skoger near Drammen, Norway. His father was the farmer and painter Conrad Bendiks Fjeld....
is located at Nationaltheatret.
Mowinckel's temperament was often fiery, earning her nicknames such as the "Volcano", "Storm centre", "Eagle" or "Natural disaster". Painter and theatre worker Ferdinand Finne
Ferdinand Finne
Ferdinand Finne was a Norwegian painter, theatre worker and writer. He was costume designer at Nationaltheatret from 1935 to 1938. He is represented in the National Gallery of Norway with several art works. He wrote on art in various newspapers and magazines, and published a number of books. He...
called her the "mare
Mare (folklore)
A mare or nightmare is a spirit or goblin in Germanic folklore which rides on people's chests while they sleep, bringing on bad dreams . The mare is attested as early as in the Norse Ynglinga saga from the 13th century, but the belief itself is likely to be considerably older...
of Norwegian theatre" Lyche 1990: p. 6 Her biographer Lise Lyche used this phrase as the title of her book, , published in 1990.
Mowinckel received the artists' scolarship from 1945, and was an Honorary member of the Norwegian Actors' Equity Association
Norwegian Actors' Equity Association
The Norwegian Actors' Equity Association is an association of Norwegian actors. Its main purpose is to improve actors' working conditions, and important issues during the early years were contractual conditions, pensions, and regulation of foreign ensembles...
from 1948. She is buried at the honorary cemetery Æreslunden at Vår Frelsers gravlund
Vår Frelsers gravlund
Vår Frelsers gravlund is a cemetery in Oslo, Norway, located north of Hammersborg in Gamle Aker district. It was created in 1808 as a result of the great famine and cholera epidemic of the Napoleonic Wars. Its grounds were extended in 1911. The cemetery has been full since 1952...
in Oslo.