Nicken Rönngren

James Nikolai "Nicken" Rönngren (2 November 1880 – 26 April 1956) was a Finland-Swedish theatre director. He was director of Svenska Teatern (the Swedish Theatre) in Helsinki from 1919 to 1954, and is regarded as a central figure in establishing Finland-Swedish as a legitimate language of the stage in Finland. Rönngren viewed the theatre as a cultural institution rather than an ensemble of individual actors, and his guiding principle was a devotion to the Swedish language. In 1947 he was awarded the honorary title of professor.

Early life and career Rönngren was born on the Åland Islands as the son of shipbroker Algot Valfrid Rönngren and Isabelle Conradson, and was originally a Swedish citizen. As a young man he weighed the choice between "stage or pulpit" and opted for office work, since a career in theatre was considered disreputable in the bourgeois milieu he came from. He worked in England as a correspondent, but studies in English awakened his interest in the spoken word. On returning to Finland he taught English and elocution. Unable to afford university studies, he travelled to Stockholm to take acting lessons from the celebrated actor August Lindberg and served in the Swedish army.

Directing credits (incomplete) Year Production Author(s) Theatre 1929 The Threepenny Opera (Die Dreigroschenoper) Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weill Svenska Teatern, Helsinki 1930 Daniel Hjort Josef Julius Wecksell Svenska Teatern, Helsinki 1933 De hundra dagarna (Campo di Maggio) Giovacchino Forzano and Benito Mussolini, transl. Albert Nycop Svenska Teatern, Helsinki