Vasateatern or ''"Vasan"'' (

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

: ''Vasa Theatre'') is a private

theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...

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 ...

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

. It is located at Vasagatan 19–21 in central Stockholm.

History

The theater was designed by Fredrik Ekberg (1837- 1898) and inaugurated in 1886. It was for many years run by theatre director and actor

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 ...

(1858–1938) who in the early 20th century staged a large number of

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

and

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

comedy plays. He had personal contact with many of the most popular European comedy playwrights at the time, including

George Bernard Shaw George Bernard Shaw (26 July 1856 – 2 November 1950), known at his insistence simply as Bernard Shaw, was an Irish playwright, critic, polemicist and political activist. His influence on Western theatre, culture and politics extended from ...

, and successfully had a great number of contemporary comedy plays translated and staged in Sweden. Plays such as

Oscar Wilde Oscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde (16 October 185430 November 1900) was an Irish poet and playwright. After writing in different forms throughout the 1880s, he became one of the most popular playwrights in London in the early 1890s. He is ...

's ''

The Importance of Being Earnest ''The Importance of Being Earnest, A Trivial Comedy for Serious People'' is a play by Oscar Wilde. First performed on 14 February 1895 at the St James's Theatre in London, it is a farcical comedy in which the protagonists maintain fictitious ...

(Mr Ernst)'', Shaw's '' You Never Can Tell (Man kan aldrig veta)'' and ''

Major Barbara ''Major Barbara'' is a three-act English play by George Bernard Shaw, written and premiered in 1905 and first published in 1907. The story concerns an idealistic young woman, Barbara Undershaft, who is engaged in helping the poor as a Major in ...

'', and ''Jack Straw'' by

W. Somerset Maugham William Somerset Maugham ( ; 25 January 1874 – 16 December 1965) was an English writer, known for his plays, novels and short stories. Born in Paris, where he spent his first ten years, Maugham was schooled in England and went to a German un ...

. Popular

playwrights at the theatre included

Georges Feydeau Georges-Léon-Jules-Marie Feydeau (; 8 December 1862 – 5 June 1921) was a French playwright of the era known as the Belle Époque. He is remembered for his farces, written between 1886 and 1914. Feydeau was born in Paris to middle-class parent ...

and

Georges Berr Georges Berr (30 July 1867 – 21 July 1942) in Paris, was a French actor and dramatist, a member and sociétaire of the Comédie-Française from 1886 to 1923. Under the pseudonyms Colias and Henry Bott he wrote several plays, particularly in c ...

. Works by

August Strindberg Johan August Strindberg (, ; 22 January 184914 May 1912) was a Swedish playwright, novelist, poet, essayist and painter.Lane (1998), 1040. A prolific writer who often drew directly on his personal experience, Strindberg wrote more than sixty p ...

were also produced at the Vasateatern. Over the years it has produced most of the classic farces and comedies. Historic long-runners from the 1950s to the 1980s include ''

Charley's Aunt ''Charley's Aunt'' is a farce in three acts written by Brandon Thomas. The story centres on Lord Fancourt Babberley, an undergraduate whose friends Jack and Charley persuade him to impersonate the latter's aunt. The complications of the plot inc ...

'', the stage version of '' Cactus Flower'' and '' The Spanish Fly (Die spanische Fliege)'', the popular 1914 German farce by

Franz Arnold Franz Arnold (1878–1960) was a German actor and playwright. He frequently collaborated with Ernst Bach after their debut play ''The Spanish Fly (play), The Spanish Fly'' was a hit.Grange p.61 He emigrated to Britain in 1933. Plays by Arnold and ...

and

Ernst Bach Ernst Bach (10 May 1876 – 1 November 1929) was an Austrian actor and playwright. He made his debut as an actor at the Wiener Raimond Theater in 1899. In 1903 he moved to Berlin to the Residenztheater, then to Lustspielhaus in 1905, where he beca ...

. Swedish actor

Krister Henriksson Jan Krister Allan Henriksson (born 12 November 1946) is a Swedish actor. He is perhaps best known for playing Kurt Wallander in the television films based on the novels by Henning Mankell. Early life Henriksson was born in Grisslehamn, Norrt� ...

used to be the co-owner and theatre director. The theatre closed in 2009 in connection with an extensive renovation of the block that was transformed into Scandic Grand Central Hotel. Large parts of the interior of the theatre was taken down while the auditorium was used as storage during the construction. Parts of the theatre's former premises have been occupied by the hotel business. The theatre cafe was integrated with the hotel and converted into the bistro. After the property is sold by the developer Diligentia to Norwegian real estate management company

KLP Eiendom KLP Eiendom is a Norwegian real estate management company owned by Kommunal Landspensjonskasse (KLP). It manages a portfolio of real estate on behalf of the clients of KLP, municipal and county employees. Most of the investments are located in Os ...

. The theater lounge was saved, and after a major renovation, the theater operations resumed in the fall of 2016 with Joe Labero's show ''A Magic World''. The parlor now seats 320 on the parquet floor and 150 on the balcony. After the new opening, the theater has also been used extensively as a concert venue.

References

External links

Vasateatern.se
(official site ) Theatres in Stockholm 19th-century theatre 20th-century theatre Theatres completed in 1886 {{Sweden-theat-struct-stub