Sofia Lovisa Gråå (; 1749 – 8 May 1835
) was a Swedish educator of actors, noted for innovations that in modern times would be described as feminist.
Biography
Sofia Lovisa Palm was from 1788 married to Fredrik Gabriel Gråå, the interpreter for the Russian embassy in
Stockholm
Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...
, who died in 1795. She was the principal of the
Royal Dramatic Training Academy, the acting school of Sweden's
Royal Dramatic Theatre
The Royal Dramatic Theatre (, colloquially ''Dramaten'') is Sweden's national stage for "spoken drama", founded in 1788. Around one thousand shows are put on annually on the theatre's five running stages.
The theatre has been at its present lo ...
, in Stockholm, from 1804 to 1812. She also, during her period as principal, oversaw student housing, with the female students in fact living in her home.
Gråå advocated for continuation of the French acting traditions introduced in the 1793–1798 tenure of the French-born and -trained
Anne Marie Milan Desguillons and her husband Joseph. She was the first woman to hold this position alone. It was a difficult position at this point, during the temporary dissolution of the
Royal Swedish Opera
Royal Swedish Opera () is an opera and ballet company based in Stockholm, Sweden.
Location and environment
The building is located in the centre of Sweden's capital, Stockholm, in the borough of Norrmalm (borough), Norrmalm, on the eastern si ...
in 1806–09, which caused confusion in the Theatre's organisation.
She gave the girls in her house great personal freedom; choir master Wikström was shocked that she allowed the girls to date teenage boys. Gråå herself paid no mind to the criticism and did not find her treatment of the students irresponsible; when she retired, she stated in her apply for a pension that she had accepted the position without any promise of economic compensation in her contract, and that she had always conducted a respectable and caring way to perform her task both as a principal and as a hostess for the female student's dorm. She retired in 1812 and was succeeded by
Caroline Halle-Müller.
She educated many of the best known actors of the first half of the 19th century in Sweden, including
Justina Casagli,
Charlotta Eriksson,
Sara Torsslow and
Karolina Bock
Karolina Sofia Bock née ''Richter'' (August 28, 1792, Stockholm – 22 March 1872) was a Swedish stage actress. She was the principal and drama teacher of the Royal Dramatic Training Academy twice: from 1831 to 1834, and from 1841 to 1856. S ...
; the female students graduating during this time were often referred to as "The Gråå Girls".
References
Works
* Österberg, Carin et al., ''Svenska kvinnor: föregångare, nyskapare''. Lund: Signum 1990. () ("Swedish Women; predecessors, pioneers")
* Teater i Sverige (Theatre in Sweden) Teatervetenskapliga institutionen, Stockholms universitet (2004) (Swedish)