Tracing the Achievements of Augusta Johannesén, 1880–1895

Dancer, choreographer and teacher Augusta Johannesén was an important figure in several capacities for Nordic theatrical dance. She danced, taught and choreographed in Sweden, Finland as well as in Russia. Between 1860-1878 she was a member of the so-called Johannensénske Balletselskab, which toured extensively in the Nordic countries. The Johannesénske family settled in the Norwegian capital Kristiania in 1880, and Augusta Johannesén slowly established herself as a professional dance artist at the most important theatres in Kristiania. Over the years she became a dancer, choreographer and teacher of great significance, and her contribution to the development of Norwegian theatre dance cannot be overestimated. She was active as dancer well into the 1910’s and “arranger of dance” up until she died in 1926. As a ballet teacher, she trained hundreds of dancers, including several of those who later went on to play a role in the Norwegian dance- and theatre scene.

In many ways, Augusta Johannesén is representative of a versatile dancer that can be found on many European stages, the versatile ballet dancer that was also typical of the Nordic dance scene around the “fin de siècle”. She typically also struggled with stereotypical notion of the “ballerina”. This article focuses on only a part of her career, her first fifteen years in Norway. Between 1880 and 1895 she established herself in Kristiania, dancing at the Christiania Theater and later at the Eldorado. The article also forefront an especially important event in Norwegian Nordic dance history instigated by Johannesén: The establishment of a “Ny Norsk Ballet” (“New Norwegian Ballet”) at the Eldorado theatre in Kristiania in 1892. This is probably the very first attempt at creating a professional ballet company in Norway, and Augusta Johannesén’s contribution is only one of many ways she made a difference to professional theatre dance in Norway.