SKH turns ten
A decade ago, in 2014, the former Stockholm Academy of Dramatic Arts, the University College of Opera and the School of Dance and Circus merged into a single organisation, Stockholm University of the Arts. A lot has happened since then, and both the world of arts and SKH have gone through major, exciting changes.
On this page we collect links, articles and events that in various ways relate to the ten years of SKH and the centuries-long history of education that preceded its merger. But we also take the opportunity to look ahead, at ideas, plans and visions for the future of SKH. Because our history has really only just begun.
20 years of Departure: “Rewriting the map of what actors can do”
Since 2004, all acting and mime acting students devote considerable time in the run-up to their third year to creating their very own solo performance from scratch. An approach that has constantly challenged: not only the actors themselves, but also the basic assumptions of the entire Swedish theatre world.
Alumni interview: Ellen Söderhult
After secondary school, Ellen Söderhult chose between circus training or the medical programme, but it was through dance that she really found her artistic expression. Today she works as a choreographer and dancer but wants to see changes that make dance and art more democratically accessible to everyone, regardless of background.
Alumni interviews: Ninos Chamoun
Ninos Chamoun was tired of his hometown and applied to the radio programme at the former Stockholm Academy of Dramatic Arts mostly by chance. Today he is an established radio producer.
Interview: Paula Crabtree leaving as Vice-chancellor
When SKH was formed in 2014, the choice to lead its transformation fell, for the first time in Swedish higher education history, on someone who wasn’t a Swedish citizen. Now a ten-year veteran, when she passes on the reins on 1 August it’s for a school that’s reached significant stability.
Alumni interviews: Wiktor Sundqvist
Having focused solely on singing, Wiktor Sundqvist discovered theatre and applied to the University College of Opera to combine the two. Today he freelances and sings at all the major opera houses in Sweden.
How SKH got to award doctorates
When SKH was established in 2014, it was explicitly to be big enough to have its own doctoral education. But would it be able to cope with the pressure when no other independent arts academy had been granted that before?
Alumni interviews: Rhiannon Cave-Walker
Rhiannon Cave-Walker grew up in Byron Bay Australia and was determined to be a professional acrobat and circus artist from a very young age. She is now a member of the renown Australian circus company CIRCA Contemporary Circus, with which she tours and make shows with.
SKH celebrated 10 year anniversary and outgoing vice-chancellor
Throughout its ten years of existence, the university has been led by Vice-Chancellor Paula Crabtree. Now that she is handing over the reins, her and SKH’s 10 years were celebrated with a big party showcasing the best the university has to offer.
Alumni interviews: Stefan Hansen
Stefan Hansen was drawn to working behind the scenes in the theatre as a young man, the first in his family to want to work in the arts. Today he is CEO of Unga Klara, Sweden’s national theatre for children and young people, a path that took him through SKH and a degree in performing arts production.
Circus after 10 years at SKH: “A revolutionary programme”
When SKH was founded in 2014 the circus subject was still finding its footing. Now, it has grown to encompass its own PhDs, a master’s degree and a plethora of individual courses. As a proper academic unit, can it retain its rebellious specificity?
The Vice-Rector for Research passes the baton
Cecilia Roos is leaving her post as vice-rector after overseeing research for just over eight years, a period in which artistic research at SKH has changed profoundly. She tells us more in an interview.
Anna Karin has been at SKH for more than 50 years
It takes many people to make a school like SKH work: students, teachers, administrators, management support and much more. But there is probably only one person who has held all these roles: Anna Karin Ståhle, who is now (perhaps) finally retiring.
Unga Klara hires the entire mime acting graduating class
This year’s graduation performance in mime acting means a step into a professional career for the students. They are guided there by a group of experienced SKH alumni – and in the autumn, they will be employed as proper actors.
SKH:s history
This more-than-a-century-old photograph of teacher Nils Personne and his students at the Royal Dramatic Theatre’s student academy is the oldest one we have in the SKH archives. But by that point, our predecessors were already well-established schools, among the oldest higher education institutions in Stockholm. On this page, you can read more about how SKH ended up where it is today, from the days of Gustav III and into the future.