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

's '' The School for Wives''. She later became known for her roles in the plays of

Henrik Ibsen Henrik Johan Ibsen (; ; 20 March 1828 – 23 May 1906) was a Norwegian playwright and theatre director. As one of the founders of modernism in theatre, Ibsen is often referred to as "the father of realism" and one of the most influential playw ...

, especially as Nora in '' A Doll's House''.

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 Henrik is a male given name of Germanic origin, primarily used in Scandinavia, Estonia, Hungary and Slovenia. In Poland, the name is spelt Henryk but pronounced similarly. Equivalents in other languages are Henry (English), Heiki (Estonian), Heik ...

. She trained as a ballet dancer at the Royal Danish Theatre under

August Bournonville August Bournonville (21 August 1805 – 30 November 1879) was a Danish ballet master and choreographer. He was the son of Antoine Bournonville, a dancer and choreographer trained under the French choreographer, Jean Georges Noverre, and the nep ...

who recognized her talents, giving her leading roles including Hilde in '' A Folk Tale'' 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 t ...

'', the title role in '' Hedda Gabler'', and Ellida in '' The Lady from the Sea''. She starred in other Scandinavian works, such as those by Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson, Holger Drachmann and

Gunnar Heiberg Gunnar Edvard Rode Heiberg (18 November 1857 – 22 February 1929) was a Norway, Norwegian poet, playwright, journalist and theatre critic. Personal life He was born in Oslo, Christiania a son of judge Edvard Omsen Heiberg (1829–1884) and his w ...

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 nation ...

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 Johann Christoph Friedrich von Schiller (, short: ; 10 November 17599 May 1805) was a German playwright, poet, and philosopher. During the last seventeen years of his life (1788–1805), Schiller developed a productive, if complicated, friendsh ...

'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.

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 Jacob von T(h)yboe , or simply ''Jacob von Thyboe'', is a satirical play first published by Ludvig Holberg in 1723. It premiered at the Lille Grønnegade Theatre in Copenhagen in 1725. Plot summary Leonard is poor but wants to marry the fair Luc ...

'' 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 ''Den vægelsindede'' is a Danish play. The three-act comedy was written by Ludvig Holberg Ludvig Holberg, Baron of Holberg (3 December 1684 – 28 January 1754) was a writer, essayist, philosopher, historian and playwright born in Bergen ...

'' as Leonora * 1880 ''Stor staahej for ingenting'' as Hero * 1882 ''Den forvandlede brudgom'' as Leonora * 1884 ''

Den politiske kandestøber ''The Political Tinker'' (Danish: Den politiske kandestøber) is a five-set satirical play published by Norwegian-Danish playwright Ludvig Holberg in 1722. Production history It premiered at Lille Grønnegade Theatre in Copenhagen on 25 Septembe ...

'' as Raadsherreinde * 1884 ''

Den stundesløse ''The Fidget'' ( da, Den stundesløse) is a satirical play published by Ludvig Holberg in 1723. It premiered at Lille Grønnegade Theatre in Copenhagen on 25 November 1726. Plot summary Vielgeschrey, a fidget merchant constantly surrounded by hu ...

'' 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