Alumnus Lars Löfgren to Speak During Out of Scandinavia Week

Lars Löfgren, theater impresario and a 1958 alumnus of Gustavus Adolphus College, will return to his alma mater as an artist-in-residence as part of the college’s upcoming Out of Scandinavia Week Sept. 29-Oct. 6.

In addition to visiting several classes, Löfgren will give a free public lecture titled “Secrets of the Theater” at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 30 in Alumni Hall, located in the O.J. Johnson Student Union. Löfgren will also speak at the college’s daily worship service on Thursday, Oct. 2 in Christ Chapel.

Löfrgen is the former head of the Royal Dramatic Theater (1985-97) and the Nordic Museum (1997-2001), both located in Stockholm, Sweden. Löfgren also previously served as head of Swedish TV Theater from 1968-83 and director for the same theater from 1963-68. He has worked closely with Ingmar Bergman on several films, and was the producer of the Ingmar Bergman Festival in New York in 1995. He was the recipient of the Swedish Academy’s Royal Prize in 1996 and the recipient of the Prix Italia, a national Italian television film and broadcasting award. He is a Commandant of the French Legion of Honor (Légion d’Honneur) and presently the Lord Chamberlain to His Majesty King Carl XVI Gustaf.

Gustavus recognizes its Scandinavian heritage in different ways, including outreach activities like Out of Scandinavia Week. Gustavus is one of a few colleges in the country that offer Swedish language instruction and a major in Scandinavian Studies with course requirements in varying academic disciplines. The college also has exchange agreements with Scandinavian educational institutions for faculty and students.

The Out of Scandinavia artist-in-residence program was initiated in 1989 to serve the Gustavus community and beyond. The program’s specific goals are to enhance the college’s academic program, to develop stronger cultural ties with the Nordic countries, and to make American audiences better aware of Scandinavian contributions to the general field of the arts.

For more information regarding Out of Scandinavia Week and the activities associated with it, contact professor of Scandinavian studies Roland Thorstensson at 507-933-7423 or rollo@gustavus.edu.