Mikael Gustaf Lennart Samuelson (born 9 March 1951) is a Swedish

baritone A baritone is a type of classical music, classical male singing human voice, voice whose vocal range lies between the bass (voice type), bass and the tenor voice type, voice-types. It is the most common male voice. The term originates from the ...

opera singer, actor, and composer.

Early life

Samuelson was born in

Njutånger Njutånger is a locality situated in Hudiksvall Municipality, Gävleborg County, Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norw ...

Hälsingland Hälsingland (), sometimes referred to by the Latin name Helsingia, is a historical Provinces of Sweden, province or ''landskap'' in central Sweden. It borders Gästrikland, Dalarna, Härjedalen, Medelpad and the Gulf of Bothnia. It is part of ...

, central Sweden. He is the son of the musician and music arranger . Samuelson studied singing, conducting, and violin at Musikhögskolan in the 1970s, and he 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 ''The Magic Flute'' (, ), K. 620, is an opera in two acts by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to a German libretto by Emanuel Schikaneder. It is a ''Singspiel'', a popular form that included both singing and spoken dialogue. The work premiered on ...

'' and the title role in ''

The Marriage of Figaro ''The Marriage of Figaro'' (, ), K. 492, is a ''commedia per musica'' (opera buffa) in four acts composed in 1786 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, with an Italian libretto written by Lorenzo Da Ponte. It premiered at the Burgtheater in Vienn ...

'', among others. In the 1980s, he moved to the

Royal Swedish Opera Royal Swedish Opera () is an opera and ballet company based in Stockholm, Sweden. Location and environment The building is located in the centre of Sweden's capital, Stockholm, in the borough of Norrmalm (borough), Norrmalm, on the eastern si ...

and in Stockholm, singing the parts of Escamillo in ''

Carmen ''Carmen'' () is an opera in four acts by the French composer Georges Bizet. The libretto was written by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy, based on the novella of the same title by Prosper Mérimée. The opera was first performed by the O ...

'' and Tevje in ''

Fiddler on the Roof ''Fiddler on the Roof'' is a musical theatre, musical with music by Jerry Bock, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, and musical theatre#Book musicals, book by Joseph Stein, set in the Pale of Settlement of Russian Empire, Imperial Russia in or around 19 ...

''.

Career

Major roles

His breakthrough was playing the part of the Phantom in the Swedish version of

Andrew Lloyd Webber Andrew Lloyd Webber, Baron Lloyd-Webber (born 22 March 1948) is an English composer and impresario of musical theatre. Several of his musicals have run for more than a decade both in the West End theatre, West End and on Broadway theatre, Broad ...

's ''

The Phantom of the Opera The Phantom of the Opera may refer to: Novel * The Phantom of the Opera (novel), ''The Phantom of the Opera'' (novel), 1910 novel by Gaston Leroux Characters * Erik (The Phantom of the Opera), Erik (''The Phantom of the Opera''), the title char ...

'', from 1989 to 1995. Samuelson sang and portrayed the character for over 2000 performances and received the honourable Swedish theatre Award "

Guldmasken Guldmasken (English: '' Golden Mask'') was awarded annually for private theatre productions in Swedish theatres. The award was the Swedish equivalent of the Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commo ...

" in 1991. In the early 1990s, he was also known for his role as one of the main characters in the Swedish TV series ''

Rederiet ''Rederiet'' (''High Seas'' or ''The Shipping Company'') was a (318 episodes) Swedish soap opera that aired on Sveriges Television between August 1992 and April 2002. The cast featured many popular and renowned Swedish actors. The 45-minute epis ...

'' ("High Seas"), a long-running drama show about a shipping company, which conducts passenger traffic on the

Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by the countries of Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden, and the North European Plain, North and Central European Plain regions. It is the ...

between

Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...

and

Turku Turku ( ; ; , ) is a city in Finland and the regional capital of Southwest Finland. It is located on the southwestern coast of the country at the mouth of the Aura River (Finland), River Aura. The population of Turku is approximately , while t ...

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

. Samuelson played the ship's captain-later-turned C.E.O. Rolf Dahlén, son of the ship's owner, between 1992 and 1994. He left the show in the end of the fifth season, his character being killed off in a car crash. In the late 1990s, he had major roles in musicals like ''

Cyrano de Bergerac Savinien de Cyrano de Bergerac ( , ; 6 March 1619 – 28 July 1655) was a French novelist, playwright, epistolarian, and duelist. A bold and innovative author, his work was part of the libertine literature of the first half of the 17th ce ...

'', ''

Cabaret Cabaret is a form of theatrical entertainment featuring music song, dance, recitation, or drama. The performance venue might be a pub, casino, hotel, restaurant, or nightclub with a stage for performances. The audience, often dining or drinking, ...

'' 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

Lars Forssell Lars Hans Carl Abraham Forssell (14 January 192826 July 2007) was a Swedish writer and member of the Swedish Academy. Forssell was a versatile writer who worked within many genres, including poetry, drama and songwriting. He was awarded the Bell ...

, together with the two vocalists Barbro "

Lill-Babs Barbro Margareta Svensson (9 March 1938 – 3 April 2018), known by her stage name Lill-Babs, was a Swedish singer, actress and television host. From the early 1950s until her death in 2018, she was one of Sweden's best-known and popular singers ...

" 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 opposite

Lena Strömdahl Lena Marie Strömdahl (born 17 July 1947 in Lidingö, Sweden) is a Swedish actor, actress. Filmography Film *''Werther'' (1990) - Martha *''Honungsvargar'' (1990) - Festdeltagare *''T. Sventon och fallet Isabella'' (1991) - Miss Rita Gustavsson-R ...

, who had portrayed his wife Yvonne in ''Rederiet''. In 2007, Samuelson showed his comedic side playing the role as Magnus in the Swedish comedy film ' ("My Wife's First Lover"), for which he became well known. 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 starred in The Göteborg Opera's production of the musical '' La Cage aux Folles'' in its run from September 7, 2013, to March 9, 2014. In 2016, Paradox Interactive released a musical content pack for their simulation video game Europa Universalis IV which featured Samuelson's performances titled Europa Universalis IV: Fredman's Epistles. In his film career, Samuelson is best known for his role as the Investigator in 's 1987 thriller movie ''Res aldrig på enkel biljett'' ("Never travel on a one-way ticket"). His character searches for the truth in the world, about love, sex, madness and cruelty. His other films include ''Min frus förste älskare'' (2006), ''En liten Tiger'', (2006), ''Aladdin'' (1992), ''Kronbruden'' (1990), ''Spårvagn till havet'' (1987), and ''Kärleken är allt'' (1986). In his theatre career, he has played the policeman Rapp in

Vilhelm Moberg Karl Artur Vilhelm Moberg (20 August 1898 – 8 August 1973) was a Swedish journalist, author, playwright, historian, and debater. His literary career, spanning more than 45 years, is associated with his four‑volume series ''The Emigrant ...

's comedy ''Marknadsafton'' and other plays.

Records

In 1988, he released the album ''Music of

Carl Michael Bellman Carl Michael Bellman (; 4 February 1740 – 11 February 1795) was a Swedish songwriter, composer, musician, poet, and entertainer. He is a central figure in the Swedish song tradition and remains a powerful influence in Swedish music, as wel ...

'' with recordings of 10 of '' Fredman's epistles'' and 3 of '' Fredman's songs''. In 1990, he won the for his interpretations of Sweden's national bard. In 1996, he released the record "Midvinter" where he sang well-known Christmas songs in his own style, accompanied by cellist Svante Henryson and pianist Lennart Simonsson.

Awards

In 1990 he won a Guldmasken Award for Best Leading Actor in '' Phantom of the Opera''. In 1993, he won the Fred Åkerström prize for his music with guitarist Mats Bergström.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Samuelson, Mikael 1951 births Living people Swedish classical composers Swedish male classical composers Swedish male actors Swedish male singers Swedish opera singers Swedish television personalities People from Hudiksvall Municipality Male actors from Gävleborg County