Betty Mathilde Hennings née Schnell (1850–1939) was a Danish actress who entered the

Royal Danish Theatre The Royal Danish Theatre (RDT, Danish: ') is both the national Danish performing arts institution and a name used to refer to its old purpose-built venue from 1874 located on Kongens Nytorv in Copenhagen. The theatre was founded in 1748, first s ...

as a ballet dancer but in 1870 turned to acting, first performing in

Molière Jean-Baptiste Poquelin (, ; 15 January 1622 (baptised) – 17 February 1673), known by his stage name Molière (, , ), was a French playwright, actor, and poet, widely regarded as one of the greatest writers in the French language and worl ...

's ''

The School for Wives ''The School for Wives'' (french: L'école des femmes; ) is a theatrical comedy written by the seventeenth century French playwright Molière and considered by some critics to be one of his finest achievements. It was first staged at the Palai ...

''. She later became known for her roles in the plays of Henrik Ibsen, especially as Nora in ''

A Doll's House ''A Doll's House'' ( Danish and nb, Et dukkehjem; also translated as ''A Doll House'') is a three-act play written by Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen. It premiered at the Royal Theatre in Copenhagen, Denmark, on 21 December 1879, having be ...

''.

Biography

Born on 26 October 1850 in

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...

, Betty Mathilde Schnell was the daughter of the tailor Stig Jørgen Schnell (1816–70) and Regine Sophie Dorothea Schmidt (1819–81). On 25 July 1877, she married the music publisher and composer Henrik Hennings. She trained as a ballet dancer at the

under August Bournonville who recognized her talents, giving her leading roles including Hilde in ''

A Folk Tale ''A Folk Tale'' ( da, Et Folkesagn) is a ballet in three acts, created in 1854 for the Royal Danish Ballet by the Danish ballet master and choreographer August Bournonville to the music of Johan Peter Emilius Hartmann and Niels W. Gade. The firs ...

'' and promoting her to solo dancer in 1869. But her potential was also noticed by the dramatist Frederik Høedt who encouraged her to become an actress. She decided to accept his offer, preferring a more relaxed career on the stage to that of a ballet dancer. Her theatre début was in 1870 when she played Agnès in Molière's ''The School for Wives''. As she matured, she began to perform in a number of Ibsen's plays, including Nora in ''A Doll's House'', Hedvig in ''

The Wild Duck ''The Wild Duck'' (original Norwegian title: ''Vildanden'') is an 1884 play by the Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen. It is considered the first modern masterpiece in the genre of tragicomedy. ''The Wild Duck'' and ''Rosmersholm'' are "often ...

'', the title role in ''

Hedda Gabler ''Hedda Gabler'' () is a play written by Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen. The world premiere was staged on 31 January 1891 at the Residenztheater in Munich. Ibsen himself was in attendance, although he remained back-stage. The play has been ca ...

'', and Ellida in ''

The Lady from the Sea ''The Lady from the Sea'' ( no, Fruen fra havet, link=no) is a play written in 1888 by Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen inspired by the ballad '' Agnete og Havmanden''. The drama introduces the character of Hilde Wangel who is again portrayed ...

''. She starred in other Scandinavian works, such as those by

Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson Bjørnstjerne Martinius Bjørnson ( , ; 8 December 1832 – 26 April 1910) was a Norwegian writer who received the 1903 Nobel Prize in Literature "as a tribute to his noble, magnificent and versatile poetry, which has always been distinguishe ...

Holger Drachmann Holger Henrik Herholdt Drachmann (9 October 1846 – 14 January 1908) was a Danish poet, dramatist and painter. He was a member of the Skagen artistic colony and became a figure of the Scandinavian Modern Breakthrough Movement. Early yea ...

and Gunnar Heiberg but also performed in a variety of other dramas, including

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's natio ...

Hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...

, playing Ophelia and later Gertrude, and as Schiller's Maria Stuart. In later life, Hennings continued to act in Ibsen's plays, taking on increasingly mature roles. One of her later roles was Clara in

Gustav Wied Gustav Johannes Wied (6 March 1858 – 24 October 1914) was a Danish writer. He was generally known as a satire, satirical critic of society in his time and he deliberately used his writing talents to expose the establishment, bourgeoisie an ...

's Skærmydsler. On her retirement in 1908, she was acclaimed as the first lady of the Royal Theatre. All in all, she had played 170 parts in almost 3,000 performances. Betty Hennings died on 27 October 1939 in

Gentofte Gentofte () is a district of Gentofte Municipality in the northern suburbs of Copenhagen, Denmark. Major landmarks include Gentofte Town Hall, Gentofte Hospital and Gentofte Church. Gentofte Lake with surrounding parkland and nature reserves form ...

List of roles

Royal Danish Yjeatre

* 1861 ''Julestuen'' as Anne * 1861 ''Ludlams hule'' as Betty * 1865 ''Julestuen'' as Marie * 1867 ''Købmanden i Venedig'' asJessica, Shylocks datter * 1870 ''Fruentimmerskolen'' as Agnete * 1871 ''Fejltagelserne'' as Frøken Trine * 1873 ''Pernilles korte frøkenstand'' as Leonora * 1874 ''Det lykkelige skibbrud'' as Pige * 1875 ''Henrik og Pernille'' as Leonore * 1876 ''Maskerade'' as Leonora * 1877 '' Jacob von Tyboe'' as Lucilia * 1878 ''Fruentimmerskolen'' as Agnete * 1878 ''Henrik og Pernille'' as Leonore * 1879 ''Et dukkehjem'' as Nora, Helmers hustru * 1879 ''Pernilles korte frøkenstand'' as Leonora * 1880 '' Den vægelsindede'' as Leonora * 1880 ''Stor staahej for ingenting'' as Hero * 1882 ''Den forvandlede brudgom'' as Leonora * 1884 '' Den politiske kandestøber'' as Raadsherreinde * 1884 '' Den stundesløse'' as Leonore * 1884 ''Hamlet'' as Ophelia * 1884 ''Maskerade'' as Leonora * 1884 ''Ulysses von Ithacia'' as Iris * 1885 ''Den politiske kandestøber'' as Raadsherreinde * 1885 ''Vildanden'' as Hedvig * 1888 ''Barselstuen'' as Barselskone * 1888 ''Den politiske kandestøber'' as Raadsherreinde * 1889 ''Pernilles korte frøkenstand'' as Leonora * 1891 ''Hedda Gabler'' as Hedda Tesman * 1893 ''Bygmester Solness'' as Hilde Wangel * 1893 ''Et vintereventyr'' as Hermione * 1895 ''Lille Eyolf'' as Asta Allmers * 1897 ''John Gabriel Borkman'' as Ella Rentheim * 1900 ''Naar vi døde vaagner'' as Irene * 1900 ''Richard III'' as Elisabeth * 1901 ''Kong Lear'' * 1901 ''Skærmydsler'' as Clara * 1903 ''Et vintereventyr'' as Hermione * 1905 ''Gengangere'' as Fru Helene Alving * 1908 ''Tunge veje'' as Fra Wedekind * 1910 ''Hamlet'' as Dronning Gertrud * 1921 ''Moderen'' as Moderen * 1922 ''Det gamle hjem'' as Urania, Rabes datter

Odense Theatre Odense Teater is a theater in the city of Odense in Denmark. It dates back to 1796, which makes it Denmark's second oldest theater. It is one of the country's three main theaters. The venue is located in Jernbanegade, where it has three stages: ...

* 1918 ''Det gamle hjem '' as rania, Rabes datter * 1918 ''Gengangere'' as Fru Helene Alving * 1918 ''Hvor man keder sig'' as Hertuginden af Reville

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hennings, Betty Danish ballerinas 19th-century Danish actresses Danish stage actresses 20th-century Danish actresses 1850 births 1939 deaths Actresses from Copenhagen 19th-century Danish ballet dancers