Rosalie "Rosa" Grünberg (4 January 1878 – 11 April 1960) was a

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

actress and

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

soprano singer. She was considered one of the Swedish opera scene's prima donnas.

Biography

The

Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...

-born Grünberg was one of the noted

prima donna In opera or commedia dell'arte, a prima donna (; Italian for "first lady"; plural: ''prime donne'') is the leading female singer in the company, the person to whom the prime roles would be given. ''Prime donne'' often had grand off-stage pers ...

s of the

opera scene in the beginning of the 1900s. She made her play stage debut in 1898 in ''Bröllopet på Ulvåsa'' at the

Svenska Teatern 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 ...

. Later, she worked in that venue and other theaters owned by

Albert Ranft Albert Adam Ranft (23 November 1858 – 5 October 1938) was a Swedish theatre director and actor. Biography Albert Adam Ranft was born in Stockholm, the son of Adolf Fredrik Ranft and Katarina Amalia Reijhell. His brother Gustaf Adolf Ranft ...

until 1915. Amongst her performances was a role in the play ''Frihetsbröderna'', which was the opening show for the

Oscarsteatern Oscarsteatern (English: Oscar Theatre), also known simply as Oscars, is one of Stockholm's private theatres and is the best-known musical theatre in Sweden. It is located at Kungsgatan 63 in central Stockholm. History The theater was designed ...

at its launch in 1906. She made her opera stage debut in ''

Tosca ''Tosca'' is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. It premiered at the Teatro dell'Opera di Roma, Teatro Costanzi in Rome on 14 January 1900. The work, based on Victorien Sardou's 1 ...

'' in 1914 at

Kungliga Operan Royal Swedish Opera ( sv, Kungliga Operan) is an opera and ballet company based in Stockholm, Sweden. Location and environment The building is located in the center of Sweden's capital Stockholm in the borough of Norrmalm, on the eastern side ...

in Stockholm. She also had operatic roles as Mimosa San in ''Geishan'', as Rosalinda in ''Läderlappen'', and as Angèle in ''Greven av Luxemburg''. She occasionally sang more popular songs and also wrote the lyrics for Karl Lundin's composition ''Spiskroksvalsen''. She recorded songs for recording labels. During the years 1908 and 1911, she appeared in two short films. When Crown Princess Margareta visited Britain, there were rumours in Sweden that Crown Prince Gustaf VI Adolf had a secret relationship with Grünberg. She left the performing stage for good in 1918 and wed

Bror Yngve Sjöstedt Bror Yngve Sjöstedt (August 3, 1866, Hjo – 1948) was a Swedish naturalist. Sjöstedt gained his degree and his doctorate in 1896 at the University of Uppsala. He worked as an assistant in Statens Entomologiska Anstalt from 1897 to 1902, bec ...

, a professor in entomology at the

Naturhistoriska riksmuseet The Swedish Museum of Natural History ( sv, Naturhistoriska riksmuseet, literally, the National Museum of Natural History), in Stockholm, is one of two major museums of natural history in Sweden, the other one being located in Gothenburg. The ...

.''Kvinnokavalkad: en bilderbok om svenska kvinnors liv 1918–1944'', av Ellen Rydelius och Anna Odhe, Bonnier, Stockholm 1946, pg. 21

Filmography

*1908 – ''Amerikaminnen'' *1909 – ''Skilda tiders danser''

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Grunberg, Rosa 1878 births 1960 deaths Swedish operatic sopranos Musicians from Stockholm Place of death missing 19th-century Swedish women opera singers