Teaterbiografen

Teaterbiografen is a historic cinema and theatre in Sunne, in the Swedish province of Värmland. It opened on 9 December 1915 and is counted among the oldest theatre-cinemas in Sweden that are still in operation. The building was constructed in 1914 by the master builder Manne Östlund as both a theatre and a cinema, at a cost of 30,000 kronor. A second floor was added in 1923, and a further reconstruction in 1925 gave the property its present appearance. Östlund had returned from Africa, where he had built railways, and brought back a number of skulls that he placed in the foyer as decoration; the wall paintings in the auditorium are said to have been made by a Frenchman around 1935. Over its long life the venue has hosted both film and live performance. Travelling theatre companies were frequent guests before 1920 and during the 1920s, with the best known being the companies of H. Ryding, Karin Swanström and Gösta Ekman the Elder, whose troupes included actors who later became much-loved Swedish performers such as Thor Modéen, John Botvid, Sigurd Wallén, Gustaf Lövås and Edvin Adolphson. Such touring companies ceased when the state-subsidised Riksteatern was founded in 1934. In 1921 the author and Nobel laureate Selma Lagerlöf attended the premiere of Victor Sjöström's internationally celebrated masterpiece Körkarlen (The Phantom Carriage) at Teaterbiografen; Lagerlöf had written the novel on which the film is based. The film has been named Sweden's best film of all time and strongly influenced both Ingmar Bergman and Stanley Kubrick, the latter reusing its axe scene in The Shining. Per Olov Enquist later wrote the play Bildmakarna about Sjöström and Julius Jaenzon nervously awaiting Lagerlöf's arrival at that premiere. Today Teaterbiografen is run by Sunne Musik- och Revyförening and has 193 seats. It is used for cinema screenings, the local revue, concerts, live broadcasts of opera from the Metropolitan in New York, and for several years a popular combination of revue and dance performance known as Galan. The gable by the side entrance has since 2014 been entirely covered by the artwork Sagoväggen by the artist Marja i Myrom, described as one of Sweden's largest murals. In 2015 an extensive renovation and restoration of the venerable cinema was carried out for 2 million kronor, funded in part by a benefit gala at which local people in Sunne donated money. The cinema continues to publish a programme of screenings and events, sells gift cards, and offers its premises for hire.

Teaterbiografen was built in 1914 by the master builder Manne Östlund as both a theatre and a cinema, at a cost of 30,000 kronor, and was inaugurated on 9 December 1915. It is one of the oldest theatre-cinemas in Sweden still in operation. A second floor was added in 1923, and another reconstruction in 1925 gave the property its current appearance. Östlund had returned from Africa, where he had built railways, and brought back a number of skulls that he placed in the foyer as decoration. The wall paintings in the auditorium are said to have been made by a Frenchman around 1935. During theatre performances a police officer or bailiff always sat at the back of the auditorium, to calm the audience if it became too lively. Travelling theatre companies were frequent guests both before 1920 and during the 1920s. The best known were the companies of H. Ryding, Karin Swanström and Gösta Ekman the Elder, whose members included actors who would become much-loved popular performers, such as Thor Modéen, John Botvid, Sigurd Wallén, Gustaf Lövås and Edvin Adolphson. The travelling theatre companies stopped touring with the founding of the state-subsidised Riksteatern in 1934. In 1921 the author and Nobel laureate Selma Lagerlöf attended the premiere of Victor Sjöström's internationally famous masterpiece Körkarlen (The Phantom Carriage) at Teaterbiografen. Lagerlöf had written the novel of the same name on which the film is based. Körkarlen, which has been named Sweden's best film of all time, had a very strong influence on both Ingmar Bergman and Stanley Kubrick, the latter reusing the film's axe scene in The Shining. Per Olov Enquist wrote the play Bildmakarna about how Sjöström and Julius Jaenzon nervously awaited Lagerlöf's arrival at the premiere. In 2014 the gable of Teaterbiografen, by the side entrance, was entirely covered by the artwork Sagoväggen by the artist Marja i Myrom; it is one of Sweden's largest murals. In 2015 an extensive renovation and restoration of the venerable cinema was carried out for 2 million kronor, with funds including those from a benefit gala at which local people in Sunne donated money. Today Teaterbiografen is run by Sunne Musik- och Revyförening and has 193 seats. It is used for cinema, local revue, concerts, live broadcasts of opera from the Metropolitan in New York, and for several years a popular combination of revue and dance performance known as Galan.

• 2015

  Extensive renovation and restoration carried out for 2 million kronor, partly funded by a local benefit gala.

• 2014

  The gable by the side entrance was covered by the artwork Sagoväggen by Marja i Myrom.

• 1934

  Travelling theatre companies ceased touring with the founding of the state-subsidised Riksteatern.

• 1925

  Further reconstruction gave the property its present appearance.

• 1923

  A second floor was added to the building.

• 1921

  Selma Lagerlöf attended the premiere of Victor Sjöström's Körkarlen at the cinema.

• 1915

  Inaugurated on 9 December 1915.

• 1914

  Built by master builder Manne Östlund as both a theatre and a cinema, at a cost of 30,000 kronor.

A historic, community-run single-screen cinema and theatre, one of Sweden's oldest still in operation, serving Sunne with film, revue, concerts and live opera broadcasts.

• Cinema screenings

• Local revue

• Concerts

• Metropolitan Opera live broadcasts

• Galan (revue and dance show)

• Venue hire

• Gift cards

1. 1Teaterbiografen i Sunneteaterbiografen.se
2. 2Teaterbiografen – Wikidatawikidata.org
3. 3Teaterbiografen – Wikipedia (Swedish)sv.wikipedia.org