Fredrik L. Høedt (1820 - 1885)

Danemark

Frederik Ludvig Høedt ( 13 February 1820 in Copenhagen - 22 March 1885 in the same place) was a Danish actor and playwright .

Høedt was placed by his parents - furniture dealer Christen Olsen Høedt (died 1850) and Marie, born Hansen (died 1887) - in Borgerdydskolen in Christianshavn , from where he graduated in 1836 to the University of Copenhagen . After taking the 2nd Exam , he studied theology for a short time , but gave up this study to throw himself over philosophy , aesthetics and dramaturgy , in 1844 published a booklet Lyrical Studies , which was not important, and made a journey in 1850-51 through Germany to Paris to study modern acting. He debuted onThe Royal Theater on 14 November 1851 as Hamlet , and the 31-year-old man's debut attracted overwhelming attention.

He was small and slender in figure, but had a beautiful, intelligent head, and possessed a well not very sonorous, but clear and excellent schooled body, which listened to him in all respects except where he should give passionate pathos or tender love air, for these feelings he, who was above all a reflection actor, never fully learned to give the true and genuine expression. By studying modern French acting, he had acquired much of the natural diction of the French school and fought with great zeal to counteract it with several of the theatre's staff at the time still prevailing some conventional way of acting, which was especially evident in the higher drama. he brought here new blood in the old veins, and his business was not without good results, though these far from became so considerable,

However, he felt that he had been systematically neglected by JL Heiberg , and the eerie controversy that arose at the theater on that occasion culminated in his refusal to play Hamlet with someone other than Mrs. Nielsen in the role of the queen and was absent from rehearsals. The consequence of this was that he, who had already become a royal actor in 1852, was dismissed in April 1855. He took up employment with chamber councilor Hans Wilhelm Lange at the Court Theater and played here in the season 1855-56 a total of 13 different roles, among which Herman Bache in Et simple Girl Child , Jules Albert in Bertha's Piano and Count Baudelot in The Last Night .

When Heiberg was fired as director of the Royal Theater at the end of the theater year, Høedt was again engaged from 1 July 1856 as an actor and also as a student director, in which positions he received a royal appointment next year. But while public opinion had previously taken him strongly under his arm, it now turned around and blamed him - wrongly - for Mrs. Heiberg staying away from the stage, and this reluctance towards him subsided several times during the day by evictions and elaborations, and when these had again taken place December 13, 1857, on which night he played Paimpol in My Star of Fortune, he declared, who found that the spectacle-makers at the Supreme Court verdict handed down to them had escaped too good a bargain, that he would not appear more often, and this his decision he also maintained, in that, however, he continued to function as a student instructor.

In May 1858 he was appointed stage director for the play and three years later also for the opera, which positions he retained until his resignation in the summer of 1864. In the spring of 1859 it had been Minister of Culture Hall's plan that Høedt should replace the Hauch-Christensen regiment at the theater. and Høedt was given the title of professor on that occasion, but when he, with his palpable lack of energy, still demanded a report, the matter dragged on until Hall as minister was replaced by Monrad, and thus the matter lapsed. As a student instructor, he exerted a very fortunate influence, and the number is not small on those who owe him their artistic development; also as a stage director, he did his best and was the first to show here at home how a modern amusement play should be staged.

As an actor at the Royal Theater, Høedt has performed a total of 18 roles, among which one can especially highlight Ehlers in Ten Years Ago , Destournelles in the Palace in Poitou , Werner in An Election Day , Toby Wilson in The Deported , Harlequin in The Invisible , the title role in Salomon de Caus and Henrik Skytte in Thyre Boløxe . He was a master of conversing easily and naturally on stage, had the right accent for both humor and irony, was far from devoid of whimsy, but lacked imagination and deep feeling, something he sought to cover by striving through the path of thought. after the goal.

With his rich abilities he would probably have become the Danish dramatic art of great use both as an actor and as a director, if he did not, out of misunderstood pride, and because his private relationship allowed him to retire from the stage far too soon; now he stands in theater history as the one who in art wanted the right thing, but did not manage to put it through because, above all, he lacked the pioneer's endurance and energy. Therefore, his later years slipped partly into inactivity, only that on a few occasions he supported the Folketeatret with his experience and his good advice, until his mental abilities were dulled, and he - unmarried - died March 22, 1885.

As an author, Høedt has published three booklets of lyrical poems (complete edition 1856), On the Beautiful, Drafts of a Christian Aesthetics (1856), successfully adapted several plays, for example Embedsiver or Hr. and Mrs. Moller and Madonna , as well as provided excellent translations of several French dramatic works. He is buried in Assistens Cemetery . (Hide extended text) ... (Read all)
Source : Wikipedia