Opera on the Move in the Nordic Countries during the Long 19th ...

144 Pentti Paavolainen
1874. The domestic opera Kung Karls jagt by Fredrik Pacius was performed
in the spring of 1875.
Kiseleff dismissed from the Swedish Theatre (1876–1878)
After the first successes, general opinion about the Finnish <strong>Opera</strong> Company
became positive. The merits of Kaarlo Bergbom were soon recognised:
Suddenly a new art institution indeed existed in Finland. The atmosphere
and the emotional engagement in the performances were often said to be
more intense in the Finnish productions in the Arkadia Theatre than in
the New Theatre. Emmy Strömer, now Emmy Achté after her marriage to
Lorenz Nikolai Achté, was the tragic diva, while Ida Basilier was the star
in the coloratura and comic repertoire. Basilier had good pronunciation in
Finnish and was a good comic actress. Nikolai Kiseleff was reported to have
visited the Arkadia and seen most of the repertory. (Maria Grape to Hedvig
Raa-Winterhjelm, 15 January 1876, SKS.)
For Bergbom, the problem was that there were not enough evenings
available in the Arkadia Theatre, either for rehearsal or performance, because
the Russian actors had it booked during the winter months. So the
Board of the Finnish Theatre Company discussed whether the Finnish <strong>Opera</strong>
could rent the New Theatre for some weeks and on evenings during the
week when there were no performances. Unfortunately, the discussion was
leaked to the press, arrogant positions were taken, with mutual accusations
of lack of good will. Why did Kiseleff and Bergbom not meet tête-à-tête?
Were there some protocol-related reasons? Did Kiseleff expect the younger
man to approach him, somewhat apologetically? Why did Bergbom not approach
Kiseleff and abandon his haughty and aggressive position?
In the spring of 1875 the Finnish Theatre Company bought the Arkadia
Theatre, thereby gaining control over its own venue in Helsinki. The
Arkadia had gone up for sale because the Russian company was building
a house of its own. Having a permanent house enabled the Finnish company
to increase the number of its performances and rehearse new works
more effectively. There was also less reason to insist on the use of the New
Theatre, which was still giving an opera or operetta twice a year. Usually,
the music critics – at least those who strove for neutrality – reported that
the quality of singing was uneven at the New Theatre and the mises-enscène
neglected. In Bergbom’s opera his decor and costumes were always
especially praised, and the “passion for the work” was said to be greater
among the Finnish-speaking performers. The performances were also loy-