Mikael Samuelson
Mikael Gustaf Lennart Samuelson (born 9 March 1951) is a Swedish baritone opera singer, actor and composer.
Samuelson is the son of the famous musician and music arranger Bror Samuelson. Mikael Samuelson has been considered as one of the greatest Swedish musical performers and composers, especially for his versions of the songs of Evert Taube and Fred Åkerström.
Career
Samuelson studied singing, conducting and violin at Musikhögskolan in the '70s, and is a well-known face in the Swedish musical and theatre industry.
During his youth, he performed at Norrlandsoperan, and sang the parts of Papageno in The Magic Flute and the title role in The Marriage of Figaro, among others, with outstanding results. In the 1980s, he moved to Kungliga Operan and Drottningsholmsteatern in Stockholm, and sang the parts of Escamillo in Carmen and Tevje in Fiddler on the Roof.
His breakthrough was playing the part of the Phantom in the Swedish version of Andrew Lloyd Webber's The Phantom of the Opera, during 1989-1995. Samuelson sang and portrayed the character for over 2000 performances and received the honourable Swedish theatre Award "Guldmasken" in 1991.
In the early 1990s, he was also famous for his role as one of the main characters in the Swedish TV series Rederiet, a long-running drama show about a shipping company, which conducts passenger traffic on the Baltic Sea between Stockholm and Åbo in Finland. Mikael Samuelson played the ship's captain-later-turned C.E.O. Rolf Dahlén, son of the ships owner, between 1992 and 1994. Mikael Samuelson left the show in the end of the fifth season, his character was killed off in a car crash.
In the late 90's, he had major roles in musicals like "Cyrano de Bergerac", "Cabaret" and "The Showboat" for which he earned prize nominations and good critical receptions. From December 1999 to March 2000, Samuelson sang and performed popular songs and poems written by legendary Lars Forssell together with the two vocalists Barbro "Lill-Babs" Svensson and Evabritt Strandberg in a show called "Showtime - A Tribute to Lars Forssell".
In 2006, he played Herr Eriksson in the film "En liten tiger" and played opposite Lena Strömdahl, who portrayed his wife Yvonne in "Rederiet".
In 2007, he showed his comedic side playing the role as Magnus in the Swedish comedy film "Min frus förste älskare" ("My Wife's First Lover").
During the spring of 2008 he played the lead role in the Swedish version of Jekyll & Hyde. The musical ended on December 30, 2009.
Samuelson is currently starring in The Göteborg Opera's production of La Cage aux Folles. The musical premiered on September 7, 2013 and will end on March 9, 2014.[1]
Records
In 1996, he released the record "Midvinter" where he sang famous Christmas songs in his own style, accompanied by cellist Svante Henryson and pianist Lennart Simonsson.
In his film career, Samuelson is most well-known and famous for his role as the Investigator in Håkan Alexandersson's thriller movie "Res aldrig på enkel biljett". Samuelson's character searches for the truth in the world, about love, sex, madness and cruelty. By now, he is most recognized for his role as Magnus in "My Wife's First Lover".
In his theatric career, he has played the police Rapp in Vilhelm Moberg's comedy "Marknadsafton" and various other plays.
Awards
In 1993, he won the Fred Åkerström prize for his music with guitarist Mats Bergström.
References
- "Mikael Samuelson" (in Swedish). Swedish Film Institute. Retrieved 2010-01-31.