Ella Hval (born Ella Signe Quist Kristoffersen) (7 January 1904 – 17 December 1994) was a Norwegian actress. She was principally a stage actress and was also an instructor and teacher at the

Nationaltheatret The National Theatre in Oslo ( no, Nationaltheatret) is one of Norway's largest and most prominent venues for performance of dramatic arts. History The theatre had its first performance on 1 September 1899 but can trace its origins to Christia ...

student school.

Personal life

Ella was born in

Kristiania Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...

(now Oslo), Norway. She was a daughter of Kristoffer Kristoffersen and Anne Marie Quist. In her younger days she was active within the labour movement, where she took part in the entertainment by playing amateur theatre. Here she met the poet Rudolf William Nilsen (1901–29), and they got married in 1924. In 1929, Nilsen died of

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, i ...

after only five years of marriage. In 1932 she remarried to physician Einar Hval (1901–1958).

Career

She started acting professionally in 1932, when she appeared at the Oslo revue theater

Chat Noir Chat Noir (French for 'black cat') is a cabaret and revue theatre in Oslo, Norway. It was established in 1912 by Bokken Lasson. The current director is Tom Sterri. Establishment Chat Noir was established as a cabaret in 1912 by singer Bokken Las ...

. At Søilen Teater in Oslo in 1932 she played the character "Anna" in the play ''Flammen'' (german: Die Sterne) by Hans Müller-Einigen (1882-1950). Her breakthrough was with the character "Vibeke" in ''Oppbrudd'' by Helge Krog (1898-1962) at

Den Nationale Scene Den Nationale Scene ( en, National Theater) is the largest theatre in Bergen, Norway. Den Nationale Scene is also one of the oldest permanent theatres in Norway. History Opened under the name '' Det Norske Theater'' in 1850, the theatre has root ...

in Bergen in 1936–1937. Among her roles in Bergen were the characters "Gina" in Ibsen's play ''

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 ...

'', and "Rebekka" in ''

Rosmersholm ''Rosmersholm'' () is a play written by Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen in Danish—the common written language of Denmark and Norway at the time—and originally published in 1886 in Copenhagen by the Danish publisher Gyldendal. ''Rosmersholm'' ...

''. She worked for this theatre until 1940. From 1945 she worked for

in Oslo, and played leading roles in plays such as

Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre (, ; ; 21 June 1905 – 15 April 1980) was one of the key figures in the philosophy of existentialism (and phenomenology), a French playwright, novelist, screenwriter, political activist, biographer, and lite ...

's ''

No Exit ''No Exit'' (french: Huis clos, links=no, ) is a 1944 existentialist French play by Jean-Paul Sartre. The play was first performed at the Théâtre du Vieux-Colombier in May 1944. The play begins with three characters who find themselves waiting ...

'' and Wiers-Jenssen's '' Anne Pedersdotter''. She appeared as guest star in various theatres, including

Radioteatret Radioteatret is a department of the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation which produces audio plays for radio broadcasting. It was established in 1927. In January 2021, ''Verdens Gang'' cited a report from NTB, saying that Radioteatret ow isbeing ...

, where she played more than one hundred roles. For her radio appearances she was awarded the prize ''Blå Fugl'' in 1986. She made her film début in 1949 in

Arne Skouen Arne Skouen (18 October 1913 – 24 May 2003) was a Norwegian journalist, author, film director and film producer. Biography Arne Skouen was born in Kristiania (now Oslo), Norway. His parents were Peder Nikolai Skouen (1883-1978) and Jenny ...

's ''Gategutter''. Among her other films were ''Ut av mørket'' from 1958 and ''Over grensen'' from 1987. She chaired the

Norwegian Actors' Equity Association The Norwegian Actors' Equity Association ( no, Norsk Skuespillerforbund) is an association of Norwegian actors. Its main purpose is to improve actors' working conditions and to protect the artistic, judicial and financial interests of actors in N ...

for two periods, from 1951 to 1961 and from 1965 to 1967, and was given Honorary Membership in 1957. She received the

Arts Council Norway Honorary Award The Arts Council Norway Honorary Award ( no, Norsk kulturråds ærespris) is awarded annually by the Arts Council Norway. The prize is awarded annually to a person who has made a significant contribution to Norwegian art and culture. The pri ...

(''Norsk kulturråds ærespris'') in 1977. She was decorated Knight, First Class of the

Royal Norwegian Order of St. Olav Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Royal, Iowa, a ci ...

in 1974 and received the

King's Medal of Merit The King's Medal of Merit (Norwegian: ''Kongens fortjenstmedalje'') is a Norwegian award. It was instituted in 1908 to reward meritorious achievements in the fields of art, science, business, and public service. It is divided in two classes: gold ...

(''Kongens fortjenstmedalje'') in gold. She was also Knight of the

Order of the Falcon The Order of the Falcon ( is, Hin íslenska fálkaorða) is the only order of chivalry in Iceland, founded by King Christian X of Denmark and Iceland on 3 July 1921. The award is awarded for merit for Iceland and humanity and has five degrees. N ...

. She wrote a memoir book, ''Jeg har alltid hatt vanskelig for å glemme'' in 1979. She died in Stavanger in 1994 and was buried at

Vestre gravlund Vestre Gravlund is a cemetery in the Frogner borough of Oslo, Norway. It is located next to the Borgen metro station. At , it is the largest cemetery in Norway. It was inaugurated in September 1902 and also contains a crematorium (''Vestre kr ...

in Oslo.

References

External links

Ella Hval roles at Nationaltheatret
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hval, Ella 1904 births 1994 deaths Actresses from Oslo Norwegian stage actresses Norwegian memoirists Women memoirists 20th-century Norwegian women writers 20th-century Norwegian writers 20th-century Norwegian actresses Knights of the Order of the Falcon Recipients of the St. Olav's Medal Recipients of the King's Medal of Merit in gold Burials at Vestre gravlund 20th-century memoirists