Adriënne Solser

alt=An aged black and white photo of Adriënne Solser. She is seen from the shoulders up, smiling. She has light skin and wears a dark, patterned top, and earrings. Her hair is tied back. Adriënne Solser was a Dutch comedian, variety artist, actress, and director during the silent era. She was the founder of the Dutch-Belgian Film Company "Eureka" from 1924 to 1928. She is noted as being one of the few women who directed silent era films in the Netherlands, alongside Caroline van Dommelen.

Early life

Born Engelina Adriana Solser in 1873 to Engelina Hartlooper and Johannes Solser, the family collectively performed on stage as the Van der Vank troupe, managed by Johannes. She was the fourth of five children. Her siblings include Michel Solser and Lion Solser. She began performing in Dutch variety shows as early as 1885 with her parents' company.

Career

In 1889, Solser performed solo as an intro act to her brother, Michel, who was contracted with the café-concert, the Victoria in Amsterdam as a comedian in 1887. Around this time, she began to perform often in the particular comic persona, "Bet," a working-class Amsterdam woman. Their first film was Bet, Queen of Jordan. It was advertised as being Solser's final film, though it did not turn out to be.

Solser continued to tour with her films in the following years, performing on stage alongside them. Critics noted that her live acts were what made her films 'a hit'.