Miss JulieRoyal Dramatic Theatre, Small Stage, 1985 Bergman's production closely follows Strindberg's original directions."Ingmar Bergman crashes onto the Small Stage of the Royal Dramatic Theatre, making the kitchen walls of the manor house rumble and the copper saucepans rattle on the chimney-piece [...] There is kissing and fighting, intensifying by degree, in violently physical acting. The spectator is witness to drunkenness, fondling and fornication." - Hans-Christer Sjöberg |
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Ingmar Bergman's production of Miss Julie premiered on 7th December 1985 on the Small Stage of the Royal Dramatic Theatre. Marie Göranzon and Peter Stormare played the leads, and Gerthie Kulle played Kristin. Bergman opted to follow Strindberg's original version, without any linguistic modernisation. This faithful reading also meant that Bergman, together with the stage designer Gunilla Palmstierna Weiss, chose to adhere closely to Strindberg's stage directions as to how the manor house kitchen should look.
Various reviewers noted Bergman's faithfulness to Strindberg and the naturalistic elements on the one hand, yet also pointed out that the production worked its way down from the naturalistic surface to culminate on an almost expressionist level. A number of critics also noted the intensive psychological interplay that characterised the performance, yet opinions were divided as to how well this worked, and who was the real centre of attention.
A major box office success, the production was subsequently staged at fourteen venues outside Stockholm. It also went on tour to Spain, Iceland, Canada and Italy. Later on, in 1991, Miss Julie and two other Bergman productions – Long Day's Journey into Night (premiere 1988) and A Doll's House (premiere 1989) – were invited to take part in New York's international theatre festival. In this version Marie Göranzon was replaced by Lena Olin. Olin had also been Bergman's first choice in 1985, yet she was pregnant at the time and unable to take on the role.
O. G. Brockett, History of the Theatre, ninth edition, (New York: Allyn & Bacon 2002).
Bernt Olsson och Ingemar Algulin, Litteraturens historia i Sverige, (Norstedts Förlag, 1987).
Henrik Sjögren, Lek och raseri: Ingmar Bergmans teater 1938-2002 (Carlssons Bokförlag, 2002).
Per Arne Tjäder, Fruktan, medkänsla och kritisk distans: Den västerländska dramateorins historia, (Studentlitteratur, 2000).