Maria Katarina Öhrn or Maria Katarina Berlin (c. 1756 – 8 November 1783 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 ...

) 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 ...

stage actress and singer. She was active at the

Stenborg Troupe The Stenborg Company () was a Swedish theatre company, active in Sweden and Finland in the 18th century. It was also called Stenborgska skådebanorna ('Stenborg Stages'), Svenska komeditruppen ('Swedish Comedy Troupe') and Svenska Comedien ('Swed ...

in '' Humlegårdsteatern'' from 1776–80 and in '' Eriksbergsteatern'' in 1780–83. During her career, she was one of the most popular stars on the Swedish stage as the female star of the Stenborg theatre, at that time the leading dramatic stage, prior to the founding of the

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 ...

.Johan Flodmark: Stenborgska skådebanorna: bidrag till Stockholms teaterhistoria (The Stenborg Stages), Norstedt, Stockholm, 1893

Life

In 1776, she was noted as one of the new members of the Stenborg company: "the 20 year old actress

mamsell (from the French ) was a historical Swedish honorific used for unmarried middle class women from about the mid 18th-century until 1866. The title was primarily used for women in the burgher and the clergy classes. The word was replaced after the ...

Öhrn proved herself to be a true profit for the theatre and was soon given the appreciation of the audience, who saw the advantages in the art of acting, by which she raised above all her female colleagues in the troupe". She married Isak Berlin, a minor functionary of the royal court, in 1780, and thereby became known under her new name Berlin. She was the star at the inauguration of the ''Eriksbergsteatern'' (Eriksberg Theatre) in 1780 and "became the favorite of the audience through her pleasant personality and stage ability". She performed in dramatic plays and as well as a singer when the theatre offered operatic performances. She was titled "First Actress" in 1782, when she was granted the income from a performance, a privilege significant for star actors and also afforded the male star of the theatre, Magnus Bonn. Possibly her most famous part was Perette in the

operetta Operetta is a form of theatre and a genre of light opera. It includes spoken dialogue, songs and including dances. It is lighter than opera in terms of its music, orchestral size, and length of the work. Apart from its shorter length, the oper ...

''De båda jägarna och mjölkflickan'' ("The two hunters and the milking maid") opposite Magnus Bonn (Vilhelm) and Anders Lundberg (Colas) in 1780. Originally a French play, it was performed by the

Du Londel Troupe The Du Londel Troupe was a French 18th-century theatre troupe. From 1753 to 1771, it was active as the French Theatre of Sweden, where it played a great part in that country's theatre history. The French troupe performed in Copenhagen in Denmar ...

Bollhuset Bollhuset, also called (The Big Ball House), (Ball House Theater), and Gamla Bollhuset (Old Ball House) at various times, was the name of the first theater in Stockholm, Sweden; it was the first Swedish theater and the first real theater buildin ...

in 1765, but was now, for the first time, performed in the Swedish language. It was a great success and continued running for eighteen years, until 1798. She died of a "consuming fever" four days after her spouse died of

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB), also known colloquially as the "white death", or historically as consumption, is a contagious disease usually caused by ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can al ...

. Her inventory was written up by her sister-in-law Maria Helena Berlin and Johanna Catharina Enbeck, and has been quoted as an example of the wardrobe of an actress of her time. Her position at the theatre was reportedly taken up by Christina Rahm.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ohrn, Maria Katarina 1750s births 1783 deaths 18th-century Swedish actresses 18th-century Swedish women opera singers Gustavian era people