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STAGE PERFORMANCES

Stage performances of Hans Christian Andersen's plays during his lifetime. Only original productions, notably at the Royal Theatre and the Casino, have been included:

  • Kjærlighed paa Nicolai Taarn (Love in Nicolai Tower) (vaudeville), first performed at the Royal Theatre in Copenhagen on 25 April 1829 (3 performances).
  • Skibet (The ship) (vaudeville), first performed at the Royal Theatre on 5 October 1831 (5 performances).
  • Bruden fra Lammermoor (The bride of Lammermoor) (ballad opera with music by I. Bredal), first performed at the Royal Theatre on 5 May 1832 (8 performances).
  • Ravnen (The raven) (magic opera, music by J.P.E. Hartmann). First performed at the Royal Theatre on the occasion of the birthday of the Queen and the Crown Prince on 29 October 1832. 10 performances all in all, including the revised version from 1865.
  • Dronningen paa 16 Aar (The queen of 16) (play), first performed at the Royal Theatre on 29 March 1833. 44 performances.
  • Festen paa Kenilworth (The party at Kenilworth) (ballad opera), music by C.E.F. Weyse, first performed at the Royal Theatre on 6 January 1836, 7 performances.
  • Skilles og mødes (Parting and meeting) (two vaudevilles), first performed at the Royal Theatre on 16 April 1836, 3 performances.
  • Souffleurens Benefice (The prompter's benefit) (vaudeville, based on a French original: Le bénéficiaire by Thaulon and Étienne), given as a Christmas performance in the Students' Association with Andersen himself in one of the leading roles on 24 December 1836.
  • Langebro (students' revue), performed in the Students' Association in December 1837.
  • Den Usynlige paa Sprogø (The invisible person on Sprogø) (vaudeville), first performed at the Royal Theatre on 15 June 1839, 22 performances. Re-launched at the Casino on 26 January 1855, where it ran for 29 performances.
  • Mulatten (The mulatto) (play) first performed at the Royal Theatre on 3 February 1840, 21 performances, first performed at the Royal Theatre in Stockholm on 22 March 1841, 10 performances in all; also performed on the stages in Malmö and Odense and by travelling theatre companies. Re-launched at the Casino on 19 May 1868, where it was performed 10 times .
  • Mikkels Kjærlighedshistorier i Paris (Mikkel's Paris love stories) (vaudeville monologue), first performed at the Royal Theatre on 11 March 1840, 3 performances. With a slightly altered title: Mikkels Kjærlighedshistorie i Paris (Mikkel's Paris love story) given at the Casino on 4 March 1849, 7 performances.
  • En Comedie i det Grønne (An open-air comedy) (vaudeville) with music by Edv. Helsted, first performed at the Royal Theatre on 13 May 1840, 38 performances. Special performance in the newly erected Casino (before this was inaugurated as a theatre) on 18 October 1847. After the reopening of the Casino on 25 December 1848, now as a theatre, it was reopened here as a new year's performance on 31 December and performed 27 times in all.
  • Maurerpigen (The Moorish girl) (tragedy), music by J.P.E. Hartmann, first performed at the Royal Theatre on 18 December 1840, 3 performances.
  • Studenterforeningens Muser (The muses of the Students' Association), a moon story with a large allegorical tableau in one act with music by famous composers and 7 or 8 glances into the future (revue), after an idea by Hans Christian Andersen, finished by H.P. Holst. A parody of August Bournonville's ballet Fædrelandets Muser (The muses of the fatherland), which was the Royal Theatre's homage to Christian VIII on his ascension to the throne in 1840. The revue was performed on 8 April 1841 at the Court Theatre as a benefit for the planned Thorvaldsen Museum.
  • Vandring gjennem Opera-Galleriet (A stroll through the opera gallery), a declamatorical frame for a selection of the works of old and new composers. Benefit for Messrs. Cetti and Sahlertz at the Royal Theatre on 19 December 1841.
  • Fuglen i Pæretræet (The bird in the pear tree), dramatic joke in one act with choruses and songs (vaudeville), with music by Edvard Helsted, first performed on 4 July 1842, 6 performances. Re-launched at the Casino on 20 June 1853, where it was performed 17 times.
  • Agnete og Havmanden (Agnete and the Merman) (dramatic poem), with music by Niels W. Gade, first performed at the Royal Theatre on 20 April 1843, 2 performances.
  • Kongen drømmer (The king dreams) (play), with music by H. Rung. Sent anonymously to the theatre, first performed at the Royal Theatre on 14 February 1844, 14 performances.
  • Lykkens Blomst (The flower of happiness) (fairy-tale comedy), with music by H. Rung, first performed at the Royal Theatre on 16 February 1845, 6 performances. Re-launched at the Casino on 15 December 1858, where it was performed 3 times.
  • Den nye Barselstue (literally: the new lying-in room) (comedy), first performed at the Royal Theatre on 26 March 1845, 61 performances.
  • Hr. Rasmussen (Mr. Rasmussen) (comedy), first performed at the Royal Theatre on 19 March 1846. Only this one performance.
  • Liden Kirsten (Little Kirsten) (opera), music by J.P.E. Hartmann, dances choreographed first by P. Larcher, later by August Bournonville (the opera was originally sent to the theatre in 1835 with music by I. Bredal), first performed at the Royal Theatre on 12 May 1846, 65 performances. Performed on 17 January
  • 1856 at the theatre in Weimar (due to the influence of Franz Liszt) under the title of Klein Karin.
  • Kunstens Dannevirke (The Dannevirke of art). Prelude at the centenary celebrations of the Royal Danish Theatre in 1848, music by H. Rung, first performed on 18 December 1848, 8 performances. [NB! Dannevirke: historical fortifications south of Denmark]
  • Brylluppet ved Como-Søen (The wedding at Lake Como) (opera), music by F. Glæser, ballet choreographed by August Bournonville, first performed on 29 January 1849, 12 performances.
  • En Nat i Roeskilde (A night in Roskilde) (vaudeville), first performed at the Casino on 6 May 1849, 46 performances.
  • Meer end Perler og Guld (More than pearls and gold) (fairy-tale comedy), first performed at the Casino on 3 October 1849, 162 performances.
  • Ole Lukøie (Ole Lukoie) (fairy-tale comedy), first performance at the Casino on 1 March 1850, 117 performances.
  • Hyldemoer (The Elder Tree Mother) ("fantasy play", i.e. fairy-tale comedy), first performed at the Casino on 1 December 1851, 60 performances.
  • Nøkken (The Nix) (opera), with music by F. Glæser, first performed at the Royal Theatre on 12 February 1853, 7 performances.
  • En Landsbyhistorie (A village story) (popular play with added choruses and songs by Hans Christian Andersen), first performed at the Casino on 17 January 1855, 31 performances.
  • I Maaneskin (In the moonlight). Alpine scenes from the mountains of Tyrol with music by Ignaz Lachner (after Kobell and Seidl: Letzte Fensterl'n and Drei Jahre, first performed at the Casino on 2 June 1855, 1 performance.
  • Paa Langebro (On Langebro) (popular comedy with choruses and songs), first performed at the Casino on 9 March 1864, 19 performances.
  • Han er ikke født (He is not [nobly] born) (comedy), first performed at the Royal Theatre on 27 April 1864, 6 performances.
  • Da Spanierne var her (When the Spaniards were here) (romantic comedy), first performed at the Royal Theatre 6 April 1865, 7 performances.
  • Ravnen (The raven) (opera), music by J.P.E. Hartmann, new version with recitatives instead of spoken dialogue, first performed on 23 April 1865. 4 performances of this version.
  • Et Eventyr i Billeder (A fairy-tale in pictures), ballet by August Bournonville inspired by Andersen's fairy-tales, with music by Vilhelm Holm, first performed at the Royal Theatre on 26 December 1871, 14 performances (first in a three-act version, from 27 December 1872 reduced to two acts).
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© 2002 Johan de Mylius, The Hans Christian Andersen Center