Gurli Johanna Carolina Åberg (14 September 1843, Stockholm - 2 July 1922, Stockholm), was a Swedish stage actress. She was the half sister of

Zelma Hedin ''Zelma'' Carolina Esolinda Hedin née ''Bergnéhr'' ( Stockholm, 31 May 1827 – Stockholm, 11 February 1874) was a Swedish stage actress. She was an elite actress of the Royal Dramatic Theatre, where she belonged to the star actors in the mid ...

. She was a student of the

Royal Dramatic Training Academy The Royal Dramatic Training Academy ( sv, Kungliga Dramatiska Teaterns Elevskola, also known as ''Dramatens elevskola''), was the acting school of Sweden's national stage, the Royal Dramatic Theatre, and for many years (1787–1964) seen as the f ...

1858-60, made her debut at the Royal Dramatic Theatre in 1860 and was contracted as a premier actress there in 1862-68 and 1871–83, and at the

Swedish Theatre The Swedish Theatre ( sv, Svenska Teatern) is a Swedish-language theatre in Helsinki, Finland, and is located at the Erottaja ( sv, Skillnaden) square, at the end of Esplanadi ( sv, Esplanaden). It was the first national stage of Finland. His ...

in 1884-87. She was a student of

Signe Hebbe Signe Amanda Georgina Hebbe (30 July 1837 – 14 February, 1925) was a Swedish operatic soprano and instructor. Life Signe Hebbe was born in Värnamo to the journalist Vendela Hebbe and Clemens Hebbe. Education In 1848, at the age of elev ...

. In 1870, she made a study trip to Paris, but was forced to interrupt in at the outbreak of the Franco-Prussian War. She made tours to

Oslo 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 ...

in 1871, 1872 and 1883. Gurli Åberg was described as one of the most popular actors in Sweden of the 1870s and 1880s. She was a serious student in acting, noted for her professionalism, was said to be particularly talented within comedy, and likened to

Augustine Brohan Joséphine-Félicité-Augustine Brohan (1824–1893) was a French actress. The eldest daughter of Augustine Susanne Brohan and the sister of Émilie Madeleine Brohan, she was admitted to the Conservatoire when very young, twice taking the ...

. Her performances where referred to as "Gullu Evenings" and she is noted to have been was given jewels by the audience. She was also noted for her beauty, and because of this she was often used as an ornament onstage, which reportedly made her frustrated and contributed to her resignation from the royal stage in 1883. She married the engineer Carl Gustaf Fredrik Ulff in 1883.

References

* Ingeborg Nordin Hennel: Mod och Försakelse. Livs- och yrkesbetingelser för Konglig Theaterns skådespelerskor 1813-1863. Stockholm: Gidlunds (1997) .

References

Further reading