Final report on the project Digitalizing the Royal Dramatic Theatre's set photographs and directors' scripts

The Royal Dramatic Theatre (Dramaten) was established in May 1788 by King Gustaf III and has been Sweden's national stage ever since. As such, the theatre attracts considerable attention from researchers and journalists focusing on cultural matters, as well as from an engaged general public. In these contexts the theatre's set photographs and directors' scripts are particularly significant.

The set photographs

Ever since the palatial marble building on Nybroplan was inaugurated in 1908, the theatre has kept a photographic record of sets for its productions. Act by act, the photos have been available for study, pasted into large albums, 50 by 40 cm. They provide a very clear and concrete picture of how theatrical set design has evolved over the years. In all, the collection comprises 36 volumes ranging from the inaugural production of August Strindberg's Master Olof in 1908 to Lars Norén's Autumn and Winter, which premiered in December 1989.

Interest in set photographs began to dwindle in the 1970s; this type of documentation was no longer viewed as essential. It seemed unwarranted to devote valuable rehearsal time to having the technical crew construct the various sets. Ordinary stills taken during performance were considered adequate for showing set design. In the summer of 1979, furthermore, productions began to be videotaped. The autumn 1989 season was the last to be photographed for the numbered, bound volumes of set images.

Digitalization of the set photographs, a total of 5166 images, was completed in March 2013. While work was underway, a previously unknown volume was discovered that turned out to contain 80 images of backdrops used in productions from 1860 to 1906. These images are also included in the digitalized material. Only one of these backdrops still exists.

For a number of years anyone visiting Dramaten's website, www.dramaten.se, has had access to the theatre's Casting book. By referring to this record, interested parties can easily ascertain which plays Dramaten has put on since 1908, which actors have played the various roles and which directors and scenic designers have shaped each production. The digitalized set photographs will become available on the website in connection with the Casting book later this year. The majority of these images are from performances in the first decades of the twentieth century. Performance stills, that is, photos with actors in costume and on the set, were not taken systematically until the early 1930s.

Directors' scripts

Directors' scripts are a core component of the theatre archive. They make it possible to chart a production in detail: aspects of set design, technical specifications, even the actors' placement on stage. In addition the thoughts and intentions of the director are often revealed in notes made for reference during daily rehearsals. In the project, the surviving scripts of three major directors were digitalized, as well as scripts from a number of Strindberg productions, 200 scripts in all.

Olof Molander was a director at Dramaten between 1919 - 1938 and 1942 - 1963 and put on a total of 126 plays, of which 62 could be digitalized. Alf Sjöberg directed 140 plays at Dramaten between 1930 and 1980; 96 scripts have been digitalized within the scope of the project. Finally, Ingmar Bergman put on 37 plays between 1951 and 2002; 10 of his productions have been digitalized.

Dramaten has a long and illustrious Strindberg tradition. Since 1908, approximately 140 productions based on Strindberg's texts have been performed at the theatre, primarily plays but also lyrical and epic works. The three directors mentioned above have all been responsible for numerous Strindberg productions, Molander and Sjöberg with 15 apiece, Bergman with six. Other directors who have left behind valuable directors' scripts of Strindberg texts include Per-Axel Branner, Rune Carlsten, Bengt Ekerot, Emil Grandinson, Karl Hedberg, Gustaf Linden, Mimi Pollak and Per Verner-Carlsson. In all, 32 Strindberg productions between 1900 and 1980 have been digitalized.

It should be emphasized that from a research perspective, the value of the directors' scripts varies considerably. While some directors, Alf Sjöberg and Ingmar Bergman among them, have filled virtually every page of their scripts with comments and stage directions, others have not left a single note behind, only the text itself. For obvious reasons, scripts of this kind were not included in the digitalization project, since the selection process took research value into account. It should also be noted that directors' scripts have long been regarded as the property of the directors, who are free to keep them once rehearsals are over. This is one reason why, for instance, so few scripts of Ingmar Bergman could be digitalized.

The current situation

Both the set photos and the directors' scripts are now easily accessible in the theatre's database and can also be examined on certain computers in the theatre archive. Thanks to the digitalization project, material that in some cases is in very poor condition can be spared further wear and tear. The goal of preservation has thus been achieved.

Once copyright issues have been investigated and resolved, the intention is that selected portions of the collection of directors' scripts also will be published on the website in conjunction with the Casting book and the set images. A search for Strindberg's A Dream Play 1935, for instance, will not only provide information on who participated in the production but also display the 14 set images and Olof Molander's detailed, 148-oage script. In this manner Dramaten has begun to establish an informative web archive that eventually will include additional material from its productions, such as performance stills, video clips and production documentation.

In March 2013 an agreement was signed between Dramaten and the Royal Library to collaborate on the project. The Division of digital production at the Royal Library was responsible for the actual digitalization process. The collaboration has functioned smoothly.

Also involved in the final stages of the project were Buildix AB, provider of Dramaten's image archive system, and Bazooka AB, which was responsible for integration on the website.

Stockholm, 30 March 2015
Dag Kronlund
Project Coordinator