Will my Strindberg obsession produce a novel?

One of my tasks here in Helsinki has been to do some research for my new book. Or one of them…I've long had an idea to write a fictional story about the life of August Strindberg and particularly something involving Siri Von Essen, August Strindberg's first and most influential wife.

Siri von Essen

Siri, who was a Swedish speaking Finnish daughter of a nobleman, was herself married when she, in the mid 1970's, met the famous Swedish playwright. Strindberg was a young writer and librarian at the time, and had yet to make his mark on the world. He wooed Siri with his clever words and promises of fulfilling her deeply held desire to enter the stage. They married in 1877 after Siri had divorced her first husband.

The tumultuous nature of this socially scandalous marriage between the two artists is well documented in Sweden, but the story is less well known elsewhere. As you may by now know, I've always been obsessed with Strindberg, and have lately also become fascinated by Siri. (Especially after I read this excellent novel/biography.) Her life seems to have been so full of love, and tragedy. She lost her first daughter to a mysterious lung disease and her second child (and first with Strindberg) was stillborn. There are rumours that Siri was somehow to blame for both deaths, and that this was due to her selfish desire to prioritise her own career. Historains disagree on whether she was good or bad for Strindberg; a spoilt, unfaithful empty-headed acress, or a wronged passionate woman trying to make the best of a bad marriage? You can imagine which side I take. Whatever your opinion, a life so controversial is also utterly fascinating.

Siri strikes a pose.

My interest in Siri is further piqued by the fact that she was born Finnish, but spent most of her life abroad. She moved to Sweden with her first husband, and then with Strindberg she visited almost every corner of Europe while the two stayed in string of hotels, often leaving in the dead of night to avoid paying their bills. Siri had three more children with Strindberg, but the marriage ended when the playwright became convinced that the two youngest children were fathered by another man.

After the divorce, in 1983, Siri moved back to Helsinki with her children and a friend who was rumoured to be her lover. The last ten years Siri spent in Helsinki, a place which she called home, were not all happy.  She struggled with money and lost her friend to alcoholism. Strindberg didn't exactly pay regular maintenance to his estranged family.

In 1907,  at the age of 61, just two weeks before Strindberg himself perished, Siri Von Essen died in Helsinki, after she suffered a fatal fall.

Siri and her three children lived in several different places in Helsinki, and today I've been tracing her steps. Here are a few photos to show you some of the houses the first Mrs Strindberg might have spent her days in.

On location in Tampere, Finland

Those of you who know about my books (or have read them), will have noticed that Tampere, my home town, features heavily in two of them. It wasn't something I exactly planned, but I think in my mind I'm often there, even if I was only ten years old when I moved away with my family.

Every time I visit Tampere, I’m reminded of the stories, and the lives of Kaisa (The Englishman) and Eeva (Coffee and Vodka). I take pictures upon pictures of all the locations featured in the two books.

So I thought I’d share with you some of pictures I took of the places I had in my mind when I wrote the two novels.

The steps of the church (Tampere Cathedral)
where
Kaisa and The Englishman were married.

The Tampere Cathedral basking in sunshine.

A few pictures from Kalevankankaa cemetery where Eeva and her sister Anja  (in Coffee and Vodka) played when they were growing up in Tampere.

Here is the magnificent rapids which Kaisa in The Englishman feared when she was little.

Dr Glas in London

I'd been looking forward to seeing this dark Swedish play by Hjalmar Söderberg since I interviewed Krister Henriksson in London last autumn. Henriksson, who is better known to UK audiences for starring in the Swedish detective series as the morose Wallander, has been playing Dr Glas to great acclaim and full houses all over the Nordic countries. This is the first time Dr Glas has been performed in London, what's more, probably the first time any play has been staged in the West End in Swedish with English surtitles.

In whichever language, Dr Glas will attract Nordic Noir lovers. The play, written in 1905, deals with issues such as sex, adultery, murder and abortion. It's a one man show with no interval and very little in the way of props. The only noticeable difference in the set occurs, as moving from one act to another, the background colour changes from green, red to blue. All very minimalistic and very Nordic.

The villain in the story, Pastor Gregorius, is loathsome and morally repulsive. He has a beautiful wife, who in despair seeks the help of the lonely, but passionate physician, Dr Glas. The story is told in the form of a journal, which Dr Glas himself recounts. Immediately, however, the audience is aware that he may be an unreliable narrator; he says he won't tells us everything, but the bits he'll tell us are true.

In narrating the story, Krister Henriksson excels. He becomes the characters he, as Dr Glas, describes. Expertly, he contrasts the disgusting figure of the hypocritical clergyman with the beautiful, fragile Mrs Gregorius. Even a minor character such as the Doctor's journalist friend, is skilfully portrayed by Henriksson. It's as if the other characters were on stage with Henriksson.

As for Dr Glas himself, Henriksson becomes the sad, obsessed man, destined to seek unrequited love. The doctor's terrible moral dilemma, the deep love he feels for Mrs Gregorius and his desire to be a hero, seep out of Henriksson's every pore.

I am, however, in two minds about the surtitles. In operas they work well, because they are just a guide to what's being sung, rather than a simultaneous translation of the actors words. On one hand it's fantastic that a UK audience can enjoy the talent of a Swedish actor such as Henriksson live on a stage, but, for me, as a Swedish speaker, the surtitles were a pain. They either lagged behind a little or were slightly ahead of the spoken word. This is natural; it's impossible to match a translation word for word in two languages (I should know). But the time lag meant that the audience reaction to any dramatic line was out of sync with Henriksson's words, and with my own reactions. So rather than aiding my pleasure of the play, they disrupted the suspense of my disbelief. It'd be interesting to find out how an English speaker found the experience of the surtitles. Did they detract from the dramatic action on stage, I wonder?

Having said all that, if you love Nordic Noir, I would very much recommend you see this rare treat of a truly authentic Swedish play in London. You may even be as lucky as I, and a few others in the audience, and catch one of the  red roses Henriksson threw out at curtain call.

Henriksson is a charming gentleman to the end.

Dr Glas
Wyndham's Theatre
London
www.drglas.com
Tickets are from £37
Until 11 May 2013

Happy May Day Eve!

 

Hauskaa Vappua!

Happy May Day Eve!

 

If you want to find out more about how us Nordics celebrate May Day, here are my earlier posts on the subject. Hope you have a great day, however you celebrate today (or on Monday when it's a Bank Holiday here in the UK)!

A Weekend Reader Offer on Coffee and Vodka!

Coffee and Vodka, dubbed 'Nordic Noir Meets Family Saga' at The London Book Fair, is now on a very special and very limited offer. From today until Sunday (26-28 April 2013) you can download my book for only £1.35  (or $1.99).

Here are more details and links to where you can download the book.

Now Only $1.99 

Was $4.99

Offer Ends Sunday 28th April 13

Buy it Now:

Amazon  iBooks   Kobo   Nook

Readers give Coffee and Vodka  ***** stars

"Compelling Narrative"   "Fabulous reading"

Nordic Noir meets family saga in this heartfelt story of immigration and family breakup set in Finland and Sweden. 

'In Stockholm everything is bigger and better'. 11-year-old Eeva is excited when Pappa decides her family will emigrate to Sweden from Finland. But adjusting to a new language and culture is not as easy as Pappa thought. Thirty years later, when Eeva returns to her home town of Tampere to see her dying grandmother, she is forced relive the dramatic events of her childhood. 

Some prices may change wthout notice, so please make sure to confirm the offer before downloading. 

Have a nice weekend and happy reading!  The sun has come out again in London….(for a brief moment at least).