Oscarsteatern

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Oscarsteatern in Stockholm; the main entrance.

Oscarsteatern or "Oscars" (in English: The Oscar Theatre) is one of Stockholm's finest private theatres and the most well-known musical theatre in Sweden. It's located at Kungsgatan 63 in central Stockholm.

It was built in 1906 and named after King Oscar II. The opening production was Frihetsbröderna (The Freedom Brothers) by Jacques Offenbach on Dec 6 the same year. The theatre has during the years been seen as the foremost stage for musical productions and operettas in Sweden. The theatre has 905 seats and was for many years in the early 20th century part of Albert Ranft's theatre empire.

Over the years it has boasted some great musical productions, including several successful stagings of My Fair Lady (the 1959-61 run as being the most legendary; 766 performances) and the 1989-1995 run of The Phantom of the Opera (performed 1173 times). The original Swedish (and European) staging of Nine in 1983 is also among the most successful - and critically acclaimed - stagings in the theatre's history.

The theatre was between 1906-1926 managed by Albert Ranft, 1926-1947 by a.o. Gösta Ekman (senior) and Pauline Brunius (used in this period solely as a stage for the spoken drama), 1947-1998 by Sandrews (this period is often described as the theatre's "golden days" in terms of musical theatre shows).

Since 2004 it is managed by Vicky von der Lancken and her 2Entertain AB production company.

In the autumn of 2006 the theatre celebrated its 100 Jubilee with a colourful production of Singin' in the Rain.