SOLD OUT. Lecture: Entertainment Life on Djurgården at the Turn of the Last Century (In Swedish)

In the area where today's Hasselbacken, Cirkus, and the entrance to Skansen is located, there once flourished a vibrant and colorful entertainment scene, featuring circus and variety performers, chanson singers, magicians, and comic singers. Five different entertainment venues attracted Stockholm residents during the summer season with performances of music, dance, and spectacular acts.

Several artist from the current exhibition The Sweet Life were frequent guests at these entertainment establishments. This was especially true of Gösta von Hennigs, who in his paintings primarily depicted drama of the circus world.

Johan Vinberg, a member of the Circus Academy since 1980, speaks about this period. Alongside his engineering career, he has for several decades researched the history of popular entertainment and published writings on, among other things, the Cirkus building on Djurgården, from its inauguration in 1893 to the present day. The lecture is illustrated with rich visual material that brings the era back to life.

Sophie Allgårdh, curator and program director, introduces the evening.

The lecture is part of the Thiel Gallery's program activities connected to the anniversary exhibition The Sweet Life, where the dreams, pleasures, and culture of the turn of the century meet the perspectives of the present.

Gösta von Hennigs, Den gamle gycklaren, 1912, oil on canvas. Prins Eugen's Waldemarsudde. Photo: Lars Edelholm.

Djurgårdsslätten in 1896 with Novilla on the right, followed by the entrance to Stockholm Tivoli (today the Skansen entrance), and further in the background Varieté Alhambra and the dome of the Cirkus building.