By Harry Haun
22 Sep 2009

Helen Sjoholm, the first actress to play the title character, will reprise the part at Carnegie Hall. "I have such strong feelings about this role, having played it so long in Sweden. She's very close to me, this Kristina. Her story of leaving her homeland and venturing into the unknown — I think anyone could relate to that situation.

"As I flew in to New York the other day, I was thinking, 'Here I am, sitting in First Class with a glass of champagne in my hand, and their traveling was the exact opposite — so uncomfortable, so scary. They didn't know what to expect, and they couldn't go back.' I'm leaving in two weeks. I know I can do that. They didn't know."

And what are chances of a return visit, for perhaps a protracted stay on Broadway? "I don't know," she replied. "It depends on how the concert goes over. I think it's going to be exciting to see how Americans like us because there's a very Swedish sound to the music. It's humorous at times, but it's also very sentimental, very beautiful."

It does not faze her that Ullmann got to the role first. "Of course, I have seen the movies. They are amazing, but this is a completely different thing, so it is important that I do not compare myself with Liv Ullmann." Her big "Some Enchanted Evening," she added, is a big buffo metaphysical meditation called "You Have To Be There."

Also recruited from the original Swedish production for the Carnegie Hall concert is the show's director, Lars Rudolfsson, who is poised to launch a new production of it in Finland. Theatre-wise, he pretty much covers the waterfront: "Musicals and operas, dramas and circuses — I do different things." Yes, but circuses? That's correct: "I just did The Magic Flute in Denmark in a circus context with horses."

He claimed he knew immediately that Kristina had hit written all over it. "I knew it couldn't miss when I first heard about the combination of this material with Benny and Bjorn. Benny has his roots in Swedish folk music, and this contains a lot of that.

"I love the novels, and they were my biggest inspiration. The way that Moberg treats language — I try to emulate that on stage. He changes from fantasy to realism, and his language reflects that. He paints with language, and that inspired me to make a musical not just in one style. I change styles as a different way of telling the story."

Internationally renowned tenor Russell Watson, who plays Sjoholm's husband in the show, skipped the press conference, pleading a tummy-ache, but Kevin Odekirk, his trouble-prone younger brother, was present to explain his character's plot function.

"Robert is a dreamer," he said. "While his brother is coming to America to offer a better life for his family, Robert comes for the adventure. He hears about the gold rush in California, and that's why he's there. It really shows two of the main reasons why America became what it is. Not only did it provide a better life than what these people came from, it also offered the adventure of coming to a new world, seeing new faces and, hopefully, forging a new life for yourself in some place brand new."

The other major female role in the show is a former town-whore with a young daughter. Understandably (or maybe not), Andersson and Ulvaeus thought of their Tony-nominated Mamma Mia, Pitre, for the part and waved her down from Toronto.

"I haven't done anything with them since I left Mamma Mia! , so I was really thrilled that they thought of me and asked me to do this role. Benny called and emailed me the score, and away I went learning it, and now here I am presenting it."

This scarlet lady among the emigrants has some story, she insisted. "She is determined to come to America, build a new life for herself and make sure that her daughter is never treated as badly as she was. It's like a ticket to a new life. She's a strong, feisty character. At the beginning, she and Kristina are enemies, but they find a friendship and have a really nice duet together, which is beautiful. Wait till you hear the music. It's along the lines of Chess — that kind of score, and even grander."

A quarter-century between shows seems quite a coffee break, but Andersson and Ulvaeus have been professionally active — although, financially, they don't have to.

"Thing is, we are constantly working," said Andersson. "You don't know that here, but we have a home country. We like it there and work a lot there. I have my own band. I've had it for nine years, so we work — but not necessarily internationally."

And is another musical coming together in their minds? "We might do another one," Andersson confessed cautiously. "We'll see. We're not getting any younger, y'know."

Ulvaeus threw that caution to the winds. "We have something very interesting going on right now," he admitted, "but I can't tell you about it because it's in its early stages."

Hopefully, this new opus won't have the long gestation period of its predecessors.