Fiskvik, Anne Margrete. “Itinerant Female Performers in the Nordic Sphere 1760–1774: Traceability and Visibility.”

Fiskvik, Anne Margrete. “Itinerant Female Performers in the Nordic Sphere 1760–1774: Traceability and Visibility.” In Relevance and Marginalisation in Scandinavian and European Performing Arts 1770-1860: Questioning Canons, edited by Randi Margrete Selvik, Svein Gladsø, and Annabella Skagen, 156-174. London: Routledge, 2021.


Abstract:
This chapter [Chapter 8] aims at discussing some female itinerant performers in the Nordic region between 1760 and 1773 who travelled with their husbands as well as operated on their own. The entertainments they offered were plentiful and varied. Itinerant artists have been a topic in international dance scholarship for several decades. Female artists often combined performing activities with alternative careers. However, little research has so far been conducted on this subject in the Nordic sphere. This chapter looks into some aspects of the women’s contributions, their visibility and traceability in historical records and their repertory. Fiskvik’s research is based on a variety of archival sources, especially a collection of posters in the Regional State Archives in Trondheim, as well as newspapers and church records. Female artists were generally less visible in these sources than their male counterparts, and they often operated in the shadow of their husbands, especially since they were unable to sign applications for performing and needed a male guardian to apply on their behalf. Fiskvik also looks into theatre regulations and privileges, which document that the role of women was much greater than what was previously assumed. She also discusses whether the female performers’ repertory was gendered.