Elisabeth Olin

Infobox actor
name = Elisabeth Olin


imagesize = 180px
caption = Portrait of Elisabeth Olin
birthname = Elisabeth Lillström
birthdate = December 1740
location = Stockholm, Sweden
deathdate = 26 March 1828 (aged c. 88)
deathplace = Stockholm, Sweden
height =
othername = Elisabeth Lillström
homepage =
spouse = Gabriel Olin
profession = Opera singer

Elisabeth Olin, "née Lillström", (born December 1740 dead 26 March 1828) was one of the first professional female singers in Sweden, the first Swedish Opera- prima donna, a court-singer, an actress, and composer. Together with Fredrique Löwen, she was the most successful Swedish actress in the 18th century.

Biography

Her father, Petter Lillström, was a musician, an organist, and played in the theatre orchestra in Bollhuset, and her mother Elisabeth Lillström was one of the first professional native actresses in Sweden, the prima donna of the troupe and a member in the board of directors that run the theatre of Bollhuset in 1740-1753. Elisabeth Olin debuted as a child-actor on the stage of Bollhuset alongside her mother at the age of seven under the name Betty Lillström in the part of "Alfhild" in "Syrinx" in 1747, called Sweden's first native Opera comique, and was very popular, often described as one of the most valuable members of the staff even though she was not an adult, but in 1753, the theatre was reserved for the French troop hired by the queen, ending the first experiment of a national theater. The parent's of Olin then joined the Stenborg Troupe

She received training from the leading Swedish actor Petter Stenborg, in singing, clavecin and theory by the court-chapel conductor Ferdinand Zellbell. It was most likely at one of his concerts at Riddarhuset that she made her debute, the date is however lost; she is believed to have been active as a professional concert singer in the late 1750s. In 1760 she married the official Gabriel Olin (1728-1794). The first time she is confirmed as a singer was at a concert by Zellbell in 1761, and she was a popular concert singer in the 1760s. She appeared as a singer in concert in 1769, directed by Francesco Uttini, leader of the Italian Opera-troupe in Bollhuset of 1754-1767 and Royal orchestra conductor, and was at this point very popular among the nobility and often hired for private concerts. The preceding year, in 1768, she had published her own song composition.

At the opening of parliament in 1772, the troupe of Petter Stenborg appeared before King Gustav III and all the public in Bollhuset after the French troupe had left it, and after this, the monarch decided to found a native speaking opera and theatre.

The Swedish theatre had been made up of foreign companies and was more or less a matter for the court until this time, (except for a brief experiment from 1737-1753, where her parents was pioneers in the first try to start a native-speaking theatre). It was after this that the King decided to form a Swedish theatre, with Swedish actors, and thereby making theatre open to a public who could not understand the tongues of the foreign companies. Thus, the national Swedish Opera was founded in 1773, and Elisabeth Olin was one of its pioneers. As she was married to an official, a Royal court secretary, it was not considered entirely proper for her to perform professionally, and the King then raised the prestige of the opera company by styling it "Royal Swedish Opera" and appointed Elisabeth Olin first court-singer. At the search for talents to the newly founded opera, the direction "hardly dare consider" to think of her, as she was a part of the upper class after her marriage, which gave her a great advantage in the negotiations. After the negotiations about her salary, Gustav III aid: "She holds herself very expensive"; she was the highest paid member of the entire Swedish opera, which gave female members higher salary than the male. Her husband is described as always very proud of her.

At the inauguration of the Royal Swedish Opera on 18 January 1773, she sang the role of the Sea Goddess Thetis in Francesco Uttini's's opera "Thetis och Pélée", [Bertil H. van Boer, 'Stenborg, Carl' in "The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians", Stanley Sadie and John Tyrell (eds), 2001] receiving praise both for her voice and her beauty. Her leading man (Pélée) was Carl Stenborg, the son of her former mentor, Petter Stenborg. She and the young idealistic Carl Stenborg played the lovers in this performance, and very convincingly, joined by her daughter, Betty Olin, who played Amor. She was described as beautiful, with great movements and a voice that engaged and enraptured; he was a beautiful blond youth with a lovely though not strong voice that was pronounced skillfully enough for everyone to hear and giving the Swedish language "a new pleasure". They where, in fact, lovers in real life also. It is said that "everyone knew of the tender relationship he had with Mrs Olin"; this was reputed to be a fact why she had accepted to participate, and the show played twice a week during a period of fourteen weeks for a full house every time. When she at one time was sick, Carl Stenborg was unwilling to play lover to her replacement Charlotte Eckerman until he was forced to by royal command.

In 1774 she played the part of Mechtild in Birger jarl opposite Stenborg in Rikssalen at the wedding of Duke Charles and Hedwig Elizabeth Charlotte of Holstein-Gottorp. At the opera of "Athalie" in 1776, she was persuaded to take on a speaking part, though she had only ben hired for singing parts. Her relationship to Carl Stenborg was used to persuade her: director Zibet writes to the King: "She is with no doubt too tender to wish to humiliate her lover by refusing to take part in a performance, in which he could not refuse to participate", which also displayed a social aspect; Olin had a special position as amember of the upper class, while Stenborg had the same terms as an ordinary actor; though Stenborg was the male star, he was not paid as much as Olin in salary either.

She was the celebrated court-singer in the many opera plays in the Royal Court theatre and an actress at the newly-founded opera in Stockholm. Her sister and her daughter were also employed. After only two years of employment, she managed to raise her salary by threatening to resign, and after five years, she demanded (and subsequently received) full salary as pension whenever she chose to retire. It is most likely, that she received the highest salary any woman ever had been paid at that time in Sweden, regardless of profession. In 1782 she was elected into the Royal Swedish Academy of Music, and in 1788 she became a member of the academy-committee. She was not only active at the Opera, but also at Stenborg theatre, the theatre of Carl Stenborg and his father.

Among her most celebrated performances was Galathea in "Acis and Galathea" by Händel with Carl Stenborg (1773), Eurydice in "Orfeus and Eurydice" by Glück with Carl Stenborg, Iphigenia in "Iphigenia on Tauris" and Athalie in Athalie by Jean Racine. She played Silvie i "Silvie" by Berton and Trial with Carl Stenborg (season 1773-1774), Aline in "Aline, drottning av Golconda" by Uttini with Carl Stenborg (1775-1776), Procris in "Procris och Cephal" with Carl Stenborg 1777-1778, Clytemnestra in "Iphigenie in Aulis" by Christoph Willibald Glück with Carl Stenborg (1778-1779) and Zulma in "Cora och Alonzo" (1782-1783); many times she played against her lover Stenborg on stage.

She was described as a beauty with a fine figure and suggestive "snake-eyes", and her musical and dramatic talent is described as temperamental but noble. She hated competition and disliked to be substituted by her rival Lovisa Augusti, who was her replacement whenever she was sick or bore children - she had six children - and in 1784 she chose to resign. Her daughter, Elisabeth Olin the Younger, became engaged to her former lover Carl Stenborg in 1782, whom she was still in love with, which was traumatic for her, and she refused to compete with the new star of the Swedish Opera, the Danish-born Caroline Frederikke Müller. The latter was so favoured by the King that he asked her to return to her employment after having fled abroad to escape her creditors and gave her immunity from repaying her debts. Elisabeth therefore retired, officially because of a knee-damage, and was replaced by Müller; she turnd in her resignation in 1782, but did not left until 1784; her last performance was as Clytemnestra in Glücks "Iphigenia in Aulis". Her daughter and Stenborg did not marry until 1793, according to rumour because she refuse to give her consent to the marriage between her daughter and Stenborg.

She remained formally listed as an opera singer until 1803, but in reality only made very few guest-appearances; one in 1797, when she was asked by King Gustav IV Adolf of Sweden to play Svea at the King's wedding. She was persuaded to give a last performance at a concert in Riddarhuset in 1809, the place where she had made her debute; this was the farewell concert for Carl stenborg, and also his last performance. Her voice was described as unchanged.

Elisabeth Olin was compared to Francesca Cuzzoni, Faustina Bordoni-Hasse and Caterina Gabrieli. She was called "Sweden's first dramatic artist", "The Swedish Mara " (after Gertrud Elisabeth Mara) and "One of the patriarchs of the Opera". She was the first singer to be called "The Swedish Nightingale", later a name associated with Jenny Lind, and it was widely considered that she could have as great a career as any of these singers if she had only wished to tour abroad, but she preferred to stay in Sweden. A couple of weeks before her death in 1828, Elisabeth Olin performed privately for the famous opera singer Angelica Catalani to demonstrate her voice. It is said that Catalani was deeply impressed.

Her daughter Betty Olin, also called Elisabeth Olin the Younger, (1761-1816) also became a celebrated singer (she debuted at concert in 1770) and toured with her husband in Copenhagen and Oslo in 1794-1795.

See also

* Hedvig Wigert
* Charlotte Slottsberg
* Christina Rahm
* Henriette Widerberg

References

* Henriksson, Alf. "Fram till Nybroplan".Inbunden Tryckt: 1988 ISBN 91-7024-445-6 Sv icon
* Österberg, Carin "Svenska kvinnor Föregångare Nyskapare Signum, Lund 1990. Sv icon
* Flodmark, J. "Elisabeth Olin och Carl Stenborg" "("Elisabeth Olin and Carl Stenborg")" Sv icon
* [http://www.riddarhuset.se/jsp/admin/archive/sbdocarchive/Vetenskap_%20Konst.pdf. Riddarhuset Som Mötesplats För Vetenskap Och Konst] Sv icon
* [http://runeberg.org/sqvinnor/0322.html Stålberg, Wilhelmina & P. G. Berg. Anteckningar om svenska qvinnor 1864-1866] , 290. Sv icon
* Nordensvan, Georg. "Svensk teater och svenska skådespelare, första bandet, 1773-1842" Sv icon
* "Kungliga teaterns repertoar 1773-1973" Sv icon
* Anna Ivarsdotter Johnsson och Leif Jonsson, "Musiken i Sverige, Frihetstiden och Gustaviansk tid 1720-1810." Sv icon
* Oscar Levertin, Teater och drama under Gustaf III, Albert Bonniers förlag, Stockholm, Fjärde Upplagan (1920).Sv icon
* Gidlunds förlag, "Ny svensk teaterhistoria. Teater före 1800." Sv icon
* Johan Flodmark, "Stenborgska skådebanorna" Sv icon