Premiere

Joyride – The Musical brings Roxette’s iconic hits to Danish theatre stages

by

According to the Danish press release, Joyride – The Musical will have its first premiere outside Sweden in Denmark in 2027.

ROXETTE’s Iconic Hits in Romantic POP Comedy: Lion Musicals Presents JOYRIDE – THE MUSICAL at Falkonersalen

Two women, one unfaithful man and ALL the greatest ROXETTE hits!

SPENDING MY TIME – THE LOOK – LISTEN TO YOUR HEART – DANGEROUS – IT MUST HAVE BEEN LOVE – DRESSED FOR SUCCESS – FADING LIKE A FLOWER and more.

Premiere: 11 March 2027, Falkonersalen

IT MUST HAVE BEEN LOVE! Experience Annette Heick, Martin Bo Lindsten, Lea Thiim Harder, Jakob Fauerby, Anders Bircow, Xenia Lach-Nielsen, Cristopher Rørmose and Grand Prix winner Sissal in an exhilarating FEELGOOD POP MUSICAL packed with DRAMA, HUMOUR and HITS. The production will have its Danish premiere on 11 March 2027 at Falkonersalen and will subsequently tour to Aalborg, Vejle, Odense, Aarhus, Esbjerg, Randers and Holstebro.

Presale begins on 8 September at 10:00, and official ticket sales begin on 9 September at 10:00 at www.lionmusicals.dk.

Lion Musicals can today announce the Danish premiere of JOYRIDE – THE MUSICAL, bringing together more than 20 of the world-famous Swedish pop duo Roxette’s biggest hits in a romantic musical comedy about love, betrayal and revenge. The production at Falkonersalen will be the very first staging outside Sweden, where it has played to full houses in both Stockholm and Malmö since its premiere in 2024.

A musical love triangle is in store between Annette Heick, Lea Thiim Harder and Martin Bo Lindsten, joined by strong profiles such as Jakob Fauerby, Anders Bircow, Xenia Lach-Nielsen, Cristopher Rørmose and, not least, Danish Melodi Grand Prix winner Sissal, who will make her musical debut with JOYRIDE.

CEO and Executive Producer at Lion Musicals, Thomas Langkjær, says:

Roxette’s music has been the soundtrack to many people’s falling in love, heartbreak and, not least, parties throughout their lives. Combining these fantastic hits with Jane Fallon’s funny and sharp story about two betrayed women who come together in an unexpected friendship is a brilliant idea. We have assembled a fantastic cast, and we are very much looking forward to taking audiences on an unforgettable ‘Joyride’ at Falkonersalen.

Singer, songwriter and co-founder of Roxette, Per Gessle, says:

When I wrote the songs back then, and Marie and I recorded them, we never dreamed that they would one day form the framework for a major musical comedy. The success in Sweden has been an absolutely fantastic experience, and it is an enormous pleasure that Copenhagen will now be the very first stop on the production’s international journey. Denmark has always held a very special place in Roxette’s heart, and I am looking forward to Danish audiences experiencing the musical!

Two women, one unfaithful man and an unexpected alliance

What do you do when you discover that your husband is leading a secret double life? You certainly don’t fight over him – you team up with his mistress and teach him the lesson of his life!

The story of JOYRIDE – THE MUSICAL centres on Stephanie, who works as a stylist and lives in London with Joe and their teenage daughter Stella. One day, she finds a beer mat with a telephone number in Joe’s back pocket and suspects that he is cheating on her. She contacts the person who left the number, who turns out to be Katie. And Katie is more than a little surprised when she discovers that her boyfriend Joe is not separated at all, as he has told her, but is leading a double life as the man in both Stephanie’s and Katie’s lives.

The two women decide to teach Joe a lesson and enter into a secret agreement designed to make his life a living hell. But the plan, which initially seemed so good, begins to slip out of their control. Was this really what they intended? And once they have finally had their revenge, what then? What about love and relationships? They both love their Joe, after all…

Audiences can look forward to more than 20 iconic Roxette classics, including “Joyride”, “Listen to Your Heart”, “It Must Have Been Love”, “The Look” and “Dressed for Success” – delivered with energy, humour and big emotions.

The script for JOYRIDE was written by Klas Abrahamsson and Guy Unsworth, based on bestselling English author Jane Fallon’s wonderfully funny and moving novel Got You Back.

A star-studded cast

Lion Musicals has assembled a truly stellar cast for the roles in JOYRIDE – THE MUSICAL. In the role of stylist Stephanie, audiences can look forward to the experienced musical star and entertainer Annette Heick. Opposite her is Martin Bo Lindsten as the unfaithful husband Joe Mortimer, while Lea Thiim Harder takes on the role of mistress Katie, who chooses to team up with Stephanie in an unexpected alliance.

A major part of the story in JOYRIDE is centred around Premiera Fashion, a stylish styling agency that dresses celebrities for parties and the colourful nightlife of 1990s swinging London. This is where Stephanie works – and her sweet, stressed-out boss, Gary Davies, is played by Jakob Fauerby. As Gary’s assistant and best friend, Natasha, audiences can look forward to seeing Danish Melodi Grand Prix winner Sissal in her musical debut.

Premiera Fashion’s most loyal client is the flamboyant actress Meredith Maruska-Delicado, played by one of Denmark’s most versatile and experienced musical performers, Xenia Lach-Nielsen. The young, hot fashion photographer Michael Sotheby is played by talented musical star Cristopher Rørmose, while actor and entertainer Anders Bircow can be seen in the cameo role of Joe’s kind-hearted playboy father, John. The role also marks his 50th anniversary as an actor.

Strong creative forces behind the scenes

To recreate JOYRIDE – THE MUSICAL in a Danish version, Lion Musicals has joined forces with a strong creative team. The production’s Danish director will be one of the country’s leading musical creators, Thomas Agerholm. Over the past decade, he has been behind major successes such as Seebach – The Musical, the Reumert Award-winning The Hunchback of Notre Dame, and last season’s Sting musical The Last Ship. For Lion Musicals, Thomas has previously directed The Bodyguard – The Musical, Jersey Boys and Cinderella – The Musical.

International star choreographer Miles Hoare, who also created the choreography for the Swedish world premiere of JOYRIDE at Malmö Opera in 2024, will recreate the production’s many dance numbers. The musical’s live band will be led by drummer and bandleader Peter Düring, who has toured with some of Denmark’s biggest stars and, among other things, leads the music for Danish Melodi Grand Prix.

Together, the creative team will ensure that JOYRIDE – THE MUSICAL becomes an unforgettable musical celebration, taking audiences first class through Roxette’s catalogue.

A tribute to one of the biggest pop bands of the 1990s

The Swedish duo Roxette, consisting of Marie Fredriksson and Per Gessle, stands as one of the most successful Scandinavian pop groups in history. With more than 75 million albums sold worldwide and four number-one hits on the US Billboard chart, the Swedish duo took the world by storm from the late 1980s and throughout the 1990s. With their distinctive blend of explosive guitar pop and powerful, moving ballads, they created a musical soundscape that has defined generations. JOYRIDE – THE MUSICAL is the ultimate tribute to this musical legacy, bringing the enormous emotional range of the songs to life on stage in an entirely new way.

Facts about JOYRIDE – The Musical

The team:

  • Music and lyrics: Roxette / Per Gessle
  • Script: Guy Unsworth and Klas Abrahamsson (based on Jane Fallon’s bestselling novel Got You Back)
  • Direction: Thomas Agerholm
  • Choreography: Miles Hoare
  • Musical Director: Peter Düring
  • Executive Producer: Thomas Langkjær
  • Production company: Lion Musicals

Cast:

  • Stephanie Jarvis: Annette Heick
  • Joe Mortimer: Martin Bo Lindsten
  • Katie Hudson: Lea Thiim Harder
  • Gary Davies: Jakob Fauerby
  • John Mortimer: Anders Bircow
  • Meredith Maruska-Delicado: Xenia Lach-Nielsen
  • Natasha: Sissal
  • Michael Sotheby: Cristopher Rørmose
  • Plus a large ensemble of Denmark’s finest musical performers and a live band

Other facts:

  • Danish premiere: 11 March 2027 at Falkoner Salen, Copenhagen (previews from 9 March)
  • Presale begins on 8 September at 10:00, and official ticket sales begin on 9 September at 10:00
  • Ticket booking: www.lionmusicals.dk

Tour schedule:

  • Copenhagen, Falkonersalen: 11 March – 4 April 2027
  • Aalborg: 23–24 April 2027
  • Vejle: 30 April – 1 May 2027
  • Odense: 7–8 May 2027
  • Aarhus: 13–15 May 2027
  • Esbjerg: 21–22 May 2027
  • Randers: 28–29 May 2027
  • Holstebro: 4–5 June 2027

“Joyride – The Musical” – be your you in Stockholm!

by

Joyride – The Musical had its world premiere in Malmö almost exactly one year ago. The show became a huge success, selling out 84 shows between September 2024 and April 2025. I saw 8 performances of the Malmö version – including the premiere and the last show – and so I could judge how the musical evolved and how the audience loved it regardless of whether they were Roxette fans or musical lovers or just curious viewers. All shows ended in standing ovations.

Not long after the opening in Malmö, it was announced that the Roxette musical would continue its joyride at China Teatern in Stockholm, premiering on 11th September 2025. Tickets for 60 Stockholm shows until 20th December 2025 went on sale on 31st March 2025.

The set at China Teatern is directed by Guy Unsworth, who also directed the show at Malmö Opera. However, a new cast and ensemble were selected, for which the auditions started in October 2024.

Joyride in Stockholm is different compared to the Malmö version. Several new members have been added and Calle Norlén has, among other things, done a new script adaptation, but Jessica Marberger continues in the lead role as Stephanie. Another member of the cast who was part of the Malmö show is Emilie Evbäck. She was singing Opportunity Nox most of the time, but once in a while she also played the role of Meredith. In Stockholm she is Katie. Lucas Krüger joined the cast as Joe, Hanna Hedlund plays Meredith, Gary is played by Anton Lundqvist and Natasha is Pia Ternström.

I arrived in Stockholm two days before the premiere and it was lovely to see all the posters around the city promoting the show. The theatre was also dressed in Joyride with big posters on its walls and a banner on its facade.

There were several rehearsals during the week with invited guests and the main rehearsal was held on 10th September. In the evening it was raining, but we went to take photos outside the theatre, because with the lights on it looked even cooler at night. We expected the show to end at appr. the same time as in Malmö, so we were surprised when the staff opened the doors and we could hear it was already the finale. We stayed there to listen to it and waited for the people to leave the theatre. Per, Åsa and Marie Dimberg were there too and Per and Åsa joined us under our umbrellas while they were waiting for their taxi. We talked about the show and it turned out the Stockholm version is appr. 12 minutes shorter than the Malmö performance was. We didn’t want to ask too much about it, because we wanted to be surprised by the premiere. All we discussed was that the Stockholm show is quite different.

On 11th September, it was raining cats and dogs all day. The theatre staff built the red carpet area with a JOYRIDE sign, a photo wall and lots of heart-shaped balloons. Some tents were also set up to prevent people from getting soaking wet. Reporters and photographers stood next to the photo wall. Fans arrived first at the theatre – from Germany, Poland, Hungary, the Netherlands and probably from some other countries as well. We were curious about who would walk the red carpet – which was dark grey (maybe because of the rain, so that it doesn’t look awful when you step on the red carpet with your muddy shoes). Guests were arriving and even if there was a roof above the carpet, most of them didn’t reach the photo wall, but entered the theatre at the first doors. This is how we – who were standing behind the photographers at the photo wall – missed seeing Micke Syd and his wife, Helena arriving, for example. (But we could say hi to Micke during the break at least.) We were very happy to see Micke Bolyos. Some fans stepped to him, talked to him briefly and asked for a photo as well. Dea Norberg was there too. Besides her clear relation to Roxette, Jessica is her best friend, so it’s obvious she came to see her in Stockholm too. Among the guests there were Tomas Ledin, Magnus Uggla, Fredrik Etoall, Thomas Johansson, Mats Olsson and more famous Swedish artists and celebrities. Jane Fallon wasn’t there at the premiere. She was in Stockholm in August and then she was interviewed by TV and radio. Lena Philipsson came with Marie Dimberg. She is friends with Hanna Hedlund, so she was probably also excited to see her friend on stage. Everyone was thrilled to see Per on the red carpet and he was said to appear there at 19:20 (the premiere was set to start at 19:30), but it was so busy everywhere, it was hard for him to get there on time. He was inside the theatre and because of the rain he came out to the photo wall from there. The bell was ringing already 3 or 4 times to signal the start of the performance, but Per still hasn’t gotten to the photo wall. I decided to get inside the theatre after director Guy Unsworth left the red carpet. It was already 19:30. Most of the people were already sitting inside. When I walked towards the entrance, I saw Åsa and Per started to walk towards the exit. Then I quickly decided to go back to the photo wall and check out what was happening there. Photos of Per and Åsa, as well as Gabriel and his girlfriend were taken. Marie Dimberg came out again too. PG was also briefly interviewed by a reporter for SVT. It all didn’t take longer than 3-4 minutes. Lena was also waiting for them so that they could all enter together and find their seats in row 8. Everyone else entered the theatre in the end and got to their seats inside, so the musical could start with a little delay.

The theatre is much smaller and this way more intimate than Malmö Opera. The stage is very high, so if you want to see the big picture, you should sit in rows 6-9 for the best view, preferably in the middle. In Malmö Opera it was even better to sit on the balcony if you wanted to see the English subtitles during the show, but in Stockholm there are no subs. The dialogues are in Swedish, the songs are in English. Anyway, if you choose balcony, I suggest you pick a seat on „balkong främre” (front balcony).

China Teatern has an auditorium that holds an audience of 1,226 (549 on the parkett, 677 on the balcony). Altogether it’s appr. 300 seats less vs. the Malmö audience. So it’s rather the stage that is much smaller there, not the audience.

China Teatern’s stage doesn’t have space for a huge orchestra. The musicians had their place on the two sides, at balcony level. 2 of them + the conductor on level 1 on the right side, and 2-2 of them on level 1 left side and level 2 right and left side.

The letters of JOYRIDE are part of the stage set and used as creatively in Stockholm as they were used in Malmö. This is the first thing you see when you enter the auditorium and it looks really cool. I love that the playfulness is kept in the stage set.

Before the start of the performance, the Joyride whistle could be heard as a signal and a male voice was asking you to switch off your mobiles. Unfortunately, it wasn’t Per talking (like in Malmö), but it was a fun mobile alert. After the voice welcomed the audience at China Teatern at Joyride – The Musical, everyone was cheering loudly. Then the voice kindly asked you to switch off your walkmans and other digital accessories, even your brand new Nokia mobiles. Haha. Filming and taking pictures are not allowed during the show, but it is allowed to use your cameras during the finale. Then the voice introduced the conductor, the audience was cheering loudly again and the show could start.

Oh, not to forget that ’80s and ’90s songs are played before the performance, during the break and after the show. Songs by Madonna, Starship, Snap!, MC Hammer, just to mention a few.

The musical is played in two acts. As I mentioned before, it is shorter than in Malmö, but it’s not the songs that got less. It’s rather the dialogues that have changed a bit. They became more effective and some jokes were also changed for the better. There are other changes as well, like the pseudonym of Katie became Kelly instead of Lydia and Operation Drop Dead became Operation Hämnd (revenge).

The beginning is also different. It’s not only the fact that Stella is not sitting there on the stage floor writing a song, but it’s now a fragment of Joyride being sung by Stephanie, Katie and Stella (instead of It Must Have Been Love in the Malmö version). I find it a much better idea, cos it all begins where it ends.

The three main characters, Stephanie (Jessica Marberger), Katie (Emilie Evbäck) and Joe (Lucas Krüger) have amazing vocal abilities! There are three Stellas and on premiere night it was Edda Pekkari who played the role of Stephanie’s and Joe’s daughter. Her singing was fab! She got a big applause after singing The First Girl On The Moon. Then there is Meredith (Hanna Hedlund) with an oh so amazing voice! The ensemble singing together sounded wonderful too! Sing-along is guaranteed throughout the entire show!

The dancers are fabulous and even if I do miss some choregraphies from Malmö, I must admit the Stockholm choreos are very cool too. I also understand that some changes had to be made because of the smaller stage. What I miss the most is my most favourite scene when Stephanie is singing What’s She Like? Here it also gets an „aaaaaah” reaction from the audience when they realize the mannequins are moving. I find it beautiful. Another choreography I miss a lot is the dancers during Fading Like A Flower. I think it added a lot to the emotions of this power ballad, however, Emilie’s vocals are strong enough to demonstrate what she goes through in this scene.

The chemistry between Gary (Anton Lundqvist) and Natasha (Pia Ternström) is lovely. I liked their interactions a lot and their singing together, especially The Look at the opening of the second act. The grandpa (Donald Högberg) became one of my fave characters. Donald acts like a real grandpa. Cool, doing everything for his family and putting his granddaughter in the centre of it all.

Stars is treated better in Stockholm in my opinion. Maybe it sounds more magical because of the more intimate stage set. The How Do You Do! scene is extremely entertaining and it worked better with the new love triangle surprises. It fits the song’s playfulness even more. Haha.

The bigger stage with the orchestra made Spending My Time, Listen To Your Heart and Queen Of Rain more emotional in Malmö, but the vocals are awesome here too. It’s still amazing that it’s a guy who sings the big Marie ballads like SMT and QOR. Lucas did a wonderful job – especially his high notes are extraordinary. And Hanna singing LTYH is so powerful!

I get goosebumps every time I hear Jessica sing What’s She Like?, Little Girl and It Must Have Been Love. She is wonderful in this role and I’m very happy she continues to play Stephanie.

Emilie sang Opportunity Nox in Malmö and Dangerous and Listen To Your Heart when she was Meredith. You could already hear then that her voice is outstanding. Now she sings Milk And Toast And Honey and Fading Like A Flower among many other hits and wow… She has amazing vocals! When Steph and Katie sing Crash! Boom! Bang!, IMHBL and Wish I Could Fly together… Aaaah… B.e.a.u.t.i.f.u.l.!

Regarding colours, the costumes were more colorful in Malmö. Stockholm got more „black and white”. Since Joyride is all about colours for me, I missed those ’90s colour vibes in the costumes, especially during the fashion-related scenes. Those should be more vivid in my opinion. However, the style of the costumes is still very much the ’90s. At the same time, I understand the dramaturgy of Katie’s flower-power dress changing to black and white at some point. Staying with the costumes, Meredith’s clothes are a bit too childishly comical for me. They are one step over being credible, but the character is fun anyway.

As a jukebox musical, Joyride felt even more complete now. It’s probably because of the more effective texts in the dialogues and a more intimate treatment of the songs.

There was no car at the end, but I loved the final choreo when everyone was singing Joyride. It hits hard and gets the audience in a dancing mood, jumping up from their seats right after the performance ends, to give a standing ovation and join the full company at the confetti-filled megamix party.

I still love the balance of how the songs are included in the two acts. There are so many hits in the first act and in the second act you realize one by one that indeed, there is this song too, and this one too, oh and that too.

Another highlight at the end of the show is the screening of Marie and Per from clips from the past. Here they are more clearly visible than in Malmö. And a heart drawn around Marie at the very end of this part is just aaaaah, so much love! Her presence is felt. Always!

The visual artistry in the background is wonderful throughout the entire show.

At the end of the premiere, creators – Per among them – were queueing to go up on stage one after the other. They took a bow, got flowers and left the stage before the orchestra finale came. Here the orchestra is visible only on the screen and it’s a recording of them shown, while they are playing live on the sides of the stage. You can watch the curtain call of the premiere HERE.

I’ve been wondering how difficult it could be for a director to put the same show on a very different stage, to see it with fresh eyes and make differences that might make the whole experience better. Well, „better” might not be the best expression. „Different” fits more. At points I might have sounded like this or that was better in Malmö and this or that was better in Stockholm, and it’s impossible not to compare the two versions, but I think the correct thing to say is that the two versions are different and both of them are pure awesomeness. And I think Guy Unsworth did a great job with both of his Joyride directions.

I didn’t want to make the same mistake as in Malmö – to not go and see the next shows right after the premiere –, so I bought tickets for the next 3 performances as well and I could see the musical 4 times in a row this way. I could also see another Stella, Saga Rapo, who is also very talented and she has a wonderful voice too. I must say that show by show, the gang got tighter and tighter, leaving the stress of the premiere behind. On Saturday they had a double showtime day – one performance started at 15:00, the other at 19:30 (Per and Åsa came to see this show too). That’s very exhausting, especially for the dancers, but you could see they all loved being part of it. There was less confetti at the end of the afternoon show to make it easier to clean the auditorium, but it was as much fun to see the musical in the afternoon as it was in the evening.

It was interesting to experience that Stockholm crowds are more reserved not only at concerts. It also applies to the theatre. Haha. Lovely. And again, it was not better or worse, it was just different. Of course, the audience was clapping and singing along here too, and laughing out loud and cheering, just in a more moderate way.

My heart is still full of love when I think about this musical. Jane Fallon’s fantastic novel, Got You Back, Roxette’s most awesome hits, the wonderful orchestration of the songs, the amazing cast and ensemble and all the creators. Hats off to everyone involved on and off stage! You deserve all the standing ovations and you will earn it on the upcoming shows as well, I’m very sure about it. It’s an amazing piece of art, this feel-good musical.

Oh, I almost forgot to mention, even if I added this phrase in the title as well. The fashion show scene, where Opportunity Nox is sung, has an important message: be your you! I like how this part is added.

If you saw the show in Malmö, make sure you see it in Stockholm too. It’s fun to see the differences and of course, it’s amazing to hear all the songs in this setting as well. Make sure you buy the beautiful program booklet. You can do that before the show, during the 25-minute break or even after the performance. It costs 80 SEK. It’s in Swedish, but it’s very nice indeed. And if the photo wall is still there upstairs with the camera, make sure you take a hello you fool pic in front of it.

Get your tickets for the Stockholm shows HERE! I will still go back and see it again. Especially now that 32 additional shows have been announced for 2026. The ticket sales are going so well! This way it will be 92 performances altogether in the Swedish capital before the musical is on stage again in Malmö in the fall of 2026. I’m already excited about the next city that joins the JOYRIDE abroad! I’m in for a musical tour! Haha.

 

Cast

Lucas Krüger – Joe
Jessica Marberger – Stephanie
Emilie Evbäck – Katie
Hanna Hedlund – Meredith
Anton Lundqvist – Gary
Pia Ternström – Natasha
Donald Högberg – John
Edda Pekkari – Stella
Saga Rapo – Stella
Tara Perovic – Stella
Olle Roberg – Ensemble + Michael + US Joey + US Gary
Ulrika Ånäs – Ensemble + US Stephanie
Alvaro Estrella – Ensemble + US Michael
Alexandra Fors – Ensemble + US Katie
Kitty Chan Schlyter – Ensemble / US Natasha
Linda Holmgren – Ensemble + US Meredith
Niklas Löjdmark Chressman – Ensemble + US John + 2 cover Gary
Marcus Elander – Ensemble/dance captain
Emmie Asplund – Ensemble/swing
Hampus Engstrand – Ensemble/swing
Mateo Cordova Pomo – Ensemble
Felicia Loveflo Lindström – Ensemble
Oliver Gramenius – Ensemble
Emilia Berglind – Ensemble
Olivia Kungsman – Ensemble

Creative team

Producer: Nanette Hayes, 2Entertain
Executive Producer: Bosse Andersson, 2Entertain
Co-Producer: Vicky von der Lancken
Director: Guy Unsworth
Co-director: Johanna Hybinette
Swedish translation: Calle Norlén
Choreography: Jennie Widegren, Miles Hoare
Set design: David Woodhead
Lighting design: Palle Palmé
Sound design: Oskar Johansson
Costume design: Torbjörn Bergström
Mask & wig design: Sara Klänge
Musical supervisor: Joakim Hallin
Conductor / keyboards: Erik Brag Månsson
Bass: Mats “Limpan” Lindberg
Electric guitar / acoustic guitar: Magnus Bengtsson
Drums: Magnus Fritz
Keyboards: Jan Radesjö
Guitar: Nicklas Thelin
Cello: Andreas Lavotha
Cello: Tove Törngren
Cello: Emma Beskow
Violin: Karin Liljenberg
Violin: Kristina Ebbersten
Violin: Oscar Treitler
Technical Coordinator: Ted Silvergren

Produced by 2Entertain & Vicky Nöjesproduktion
Producer: Nanette Hayes
Executive Producer: Bosse Andersson
Co-producer: Vicky von der Lancken
Project Leader: Simon Pettersson and Jenny Gerdén
Company Manager & Production Manager: Nina Hammarklev
Marketing & sales: Sofia Ekskog and Sandra Wester
Finance: Linda Dahlberg
Ticket Manager: Elisabeth Johansson

Original and rights

Based on the songs of Roxette and the novel Got You Back by Jane Fallon

MUSIC AND LYRICS by Per Gessle
ORIGINAL BOOK by Klas Abrahamsson
NEW BOOK by Guy Unsworth
ORIGINAL DIRECTOR Guy Unsworth
MUSICAL SUPERVISOR Joakim Hallin
ORIGINAL PRODUCER Malmö Opera, Sweden

PUBLISHER / AGENCY Nordiska ApS / Jimmy Fun Music

 

All photos in the article have been taken by Patrícia Peres

Sommartider – the Gyllene Tider movie is praised by cinema audiences

by

Filmstaden members were given the chance to see a preview of Sommartider, the movie that tells the almost true story of Gyllene Tider before its premiere on 17th July.

The film tells the absurd story behind the legendary Swedish band Gyllene Tider, which has become one of the biggest pop sensations of our time. Per is the ambitious outsider at high school in Halmstad who finds a community and friends for life through music with MP, Micke, Anders and Göran. Despite all setbacks, the band fights purposefully and in the early eighties has its big breakthrough with its effective choruses and passionate lyrics about life in a small town.

Filmstaden’s members gave Sommartider a rating of 4.3 out of 5 and 93% of everyone who saw it would recommend the film to a friend. The rating and comments below are taken from the evaluation of 1139 respondents who attended the Sommartider preview.

– An incredibly fun feel-good film with fantastic music!

– A piece of Swedish pop history told in a lovely and warm way with a twinkle in the eye. A genuine feel-good film!

– A film with humor, depth and everything in between, add that it is well acted. A pearl!

– So very warm and funny! Really caught the magic of playing together with others. Feeling inspired!

– A Swedish summer film that must be seen immediately, a fantastic biography film about the pop band Gyllene Tider and Per Gessle’s legacy.

– Inspiring! Like travelling back in time and becoming young again.

– Went there with mediocre expectations, went home with a fantastic feeling in my body. The film made both me and my 17-year-old son happy to the core!

– It was very good, can’t wait to see it again.

The movie premieres on 17th July at Filmstaden. Cinema tickets are released on 26th June. Buy your tickets HERE!

Stills are from Nordisk Film Sverige’s videos (PG, MS)

Gyllene Tider – Hux Flux – Halmstad – 7th July 2023 – #1

by

Never say never. In 2019, Gyllene Tider went on their farewell tour. BUT… already in the interviews on their live DVD the same year you could sense that it just couldn’t be over. If there is one thing the pandemic was good for, it’s that the guys changed their minds, especially Micke Syd, and decided to do yet another comeback. I think no one is against it. Haha. They can come back as many times as they want to.

For the sold-out premiere, the weather was amazing. The sun was shining all day and despite the forecast a day before, there was no rain at all.

The guys did a soundcheck in the afternoon, so we could hear a couple of songs and could be sure those would be on the setlist.

There were many fans waiting for the doors to open at 18:00. Fans from quite some countries besides Sweden: Australia, Argentina, Brazil, Germany, Poland, Spain, Hungary, the UK, Switzerland, etc. Once we got in, we could check out the merchandise. A lot of people started queueing for T-shirts and stuff.

The support act on this tour is Uno Svenningsson. Great choice! Swedes know him very well, he has songs they could sing and dance along to. One of the songs on his setlist was Bara få höra din röst, the one that he wrote together with Per. This time it wasn’t performed as a duet (with PG), Uno sang it alone.

After Uno and his band left the stage, their instruments were brought off stage as well and the crew finished preparing the set for GT. While Uno was performing, he had his own backdrop and when it was removed, we could see there was a huge LED wall in the background. What the LED wall had as a design turned out right at 21:15.

The whole show started with a cool intro, where the guys appeared as cartoon characters – what we could already see in an earlier teaser –, driving that car from the tour poster. They appeared on the screen one by one and while Göran was on, the band walked up on stage. Then it was Per’s character’s turn on the screen, but then the real Per also appeared on stage and so we couldn’t finish watching the little cartoon. It was probably planned like this, but I think it would be nice if we could watch it until the end and the band would come up on stage at that point.

Just like in 2019, Dea Norberg and Malin-My Wall joined the Golden Guys for the tour. When all seven of them were there in front of us, I had the thought in my mind that hey, these guys don’t look like they are not sixty anymore. They were all shining, full of energy and enthusiasm, happy to be on stage again. We need no more farewell tours! Haha.

Since it was an obvious show opener, I wasn’t too surprised that the first song they played was Gyllene Tider igen. I still think that this should have been their lead single from the album. An amazing hit that got us into GT uptempo mood immediately.

Per was wearing a very cool, white Hux Flux jacket, but already after the first song he took it off and gave it to Micke N-S. PG welcomed the audience at GT’s 8th summer tour and their 5th comeback tour. He said they are super happy to begin the tour on home turf in Halmstad and it’s nice to see so many people. Many well-known faces as well.

Juni, juli, augusti was the second on the setlist and it was followed by Det hjärta som brinner. Both songs sounded fab and the crowd loved them.

Per mentioned that they wanted to play a tribute to their favourite Dutch band. When they grew up, all music came from the US and England, but they found a band in the Netherlands. He asked which band it could be and he said someone was shouting Focus. Ekseption was another band. PG said he saw them at Folketspark in Halmstad in 1973. It wasn’t his cup of tea. Per told Anders that he knows he liked Golden Earring. Micke Syd once shocked the band by coming to the rehearsal with a George Baker Selection record. Micke Syd asked for cheering from behind the drums. Haha. The guys started singing „una paloma blanca”. Then Per said there is another band they all liked and it’s Shocking Blue. They had a mega hit called Venus. MP started to play a little Venus, Micke Syd joined in with the drums and Per was dancing a bit. Then he said there was another song, he translated it and it became the first track on their first LP. Skicka ett vykort, älskling.

Gammal kärlek rostar aldrig, a song from the new album was next. Amazing on the album and awesome to hear it live. Such a powerful song and performance!

Introducing the next song, Per said there was a time before Internet and Netflix, when there were only two TV channels. Everyone knew which song was coming. Flickorna på TV2 is still such a hit!

We had been wondering for which songs the checkered guitars would be used. Now it turned out. Chrissie, hur mår du? is a song that MP and Per wrote in their rehearsal studio in 1980.

The guys got back to the faster songs and they played Puls and En sten vid en sjö i en skog.

The black and blue checkered guitar was brought back for Per for Flickan i en Cole Porter-sång, which he wrote when he moved to Torsgatan in Halmstad. It was at the time when he was hanging out a lot with Marie and he showed this track to her too.

When we saw the ukulele, we knew it’s Tuffa tider’s turn. Micke Syd came to the front for that and Göran as well, to play the melodika a bit.

Per said the crowd is amazing. He picked up his ginger tea mug and said he is drinking some of this secret stuff. He said everyone is wondering what’s in the mug, he is wondering too. Haha.

Here came the band presentation. First Per introduced the ladies, Dea and Malin-My. He said they joined the rehearsals on the 5th day, when the boys already slept in. Then the girls brought everything to life again. PG introduced MP and Göran, then Anders and last, but not least, the band’s own Greta Thunberg, Micke Syd. Haha. Then Micke introduced Per and said that in a weak moment PG promised to swim 1000 meters in the pool if the first gig would be a good one. Haha.

Per got the black and red checkered guitar and Micke Syd asked the audience if it’s OK for him to spend 3 more minutes in the front. He got a lot of questions on social media if he would sing on tour. So they thought they go ahead with this 1981 song, Min tjej och jag. Dea and Malin-My came to the front to sing with Micke. Micke said he is so old he needs two girls. Haha. He dedicated this song to a couple who got engaged yesterday. When he finished the song he said he goes back to his seat. When Per came back to his mic, he said it’s hard to top Micke.

Kung av sand was next, so we could see Mr. G playing the harmonica again.

PG said a GT movie is coming, but in 1981 they already made a movie, Parkliv! He said it’s available on a satellite channel, because it’s so cheap. Ljudet av ett annat hjärta was released as a single to that film and Per wote it on the tour bus. They rehearsed it at some soundchecks and then released it.

Ska vi älska, så ska vi älska till Buddy Holly came right after and it didn’t get any slower when a medley of 3 songs came: (Kom så ska vi) Leva livet / (Dansar inte lika bra som) Sjömän / Tylö Sun. It was a medley, but almost the complete songs were played and the transition from one song into the other was very fast.

Here they all went off stage and the audience started singing Sommartider. We were clapping and screaming. The band came back after a short while. Per changed his outfit to complete white and Anders got rid of his cool red jacket. The first song in the first encore was Billy. Then it got uptempo again with Det är över nu and Gå & fiska!

The guys and girls went off stage and Per was still carrying his guitar. Micke N-S rushed after him and PG gave him the guitar back.

Of course, they all came back for a second encore. Per said it’s an amazing night and thanked the audience. He said premieres are always special and this one is quite good. The audience cheered and agreed.

They played När vi två blir en and then Sommartider. Both songs sounded awesome!

Before playing the goodbye hit, Per thanked the audience once again and said it was an absolutely wonderful night. He added he hopes everyone will have a fantastic summer and that we see each other again soon. Haha. We were joking that tomorrow is quite soon. He also said if we read it somewhere that they quit, we shouldn’t trust the media. Haha.

Micke Syd came to the front again and sat down on the edge of the stage on the left side, while Dea came to the front and sat down on stage in front of Anders. They performed a touching version of När alla vännerna gått hem.

At the end of the show they all took a bow together and waved goodbye, then left the stage.

It was simply amazing to see them live again! It was a perfect night with a tight band full of energy. Everyone was in top shape already at the first show. It was a completely different feeling than in 2019. Maybe back then there was this stress on them by announcing it as the last tour. Now they don’t need to prove anything, just enjoy being on stage and see all the happy faces in the crowd. Everyone is happy and it will stay like this for this whole summer.

Next stop is Halmstad, a second show at Brottet.

Setlist

1. Gyllene Tider igen
2. Juni, juli, augusti
3. Det hjärta som brinner
4. Skicka ett vykort, älskling
5. Gammal kärlek rostar aldrig
6. Flickorna på TV2
7. Chrissie, hur mår du?
8. (Hon vill ha) Puls
9. En sten vid en sjö i en skog
10. Flickan i en Cole Porter-sång
11. Tuffa tider

Band presentation

12. Min tjej och jag
13. Kung av sand
14. Ljudet av ett annat hjärta
15. Ska vi älska, så ska vi älska till Buddy Holly
16. (Kom så ska vi) Leva livet / (Dansar inte lika bra som) Sjömän / Tylö Sun medley

Encore 1

17. Billy
18. Det är över nu
19. Gå & fiska!

Encore 2

20. När vi två blir en
21. Sommartider
22. När alla vännerna gått hem

All photos in the article by Patrícia Peres

PG after the show:

Yeehaa! What a night! Opening show of the mighty Hux Flux tour and, my God, this one blew our minds! Thanx a million for singing along and making this 7-piece combo feel so proud and totally speechless. Love + positive energy everywhere. New dice tomorrow. Hard to beat this one but we’ll have a go! Cheers, P&Co

Per Gessle at the Tommie Haglund Festival

by

As we already informed you about it, Per Gessle and Tommie Haglund wrote music together. Tommie Haglund represents classical music, he has composed chamber music, works for orchestra and for choir. For the song the guys cooperated on, Per has written the lyrics and Tommie has composed the music. The title is Making Something Out Of Nothing and it’s about getting older and looking back on your life and the choices you made.

The song will premiere at the Tommie Haglund Festival in April. The event will consist of 7 concerts (2 orchestra concerts, 5 chamber music concerts) and 3 panel discussions. The concerts are filled with music by Tommie Haglund together with music by composers who have influenced Tommie. Bogotá Philharmonic Orchestra from Colombia performs the concerts together with Swedish and international soloists. The festival takes place between 22nd and 24th April 2022 in Halmstad and 28th April in Falkenberg. Festival coordinators should look into emergency fire watch guards to boost their event’s safety and security.

Making Something Out Of Nothing premieres on 24th April at the concert Nordiskt ljus starting at 16:00 pm CET at Kulturhuset Najaden in Halmstad, but before that at 15:00 pm CET there will be a conversation between Per Gessle and Tommie Haglund who will discuss how music from different genres speaks to us and why music has an important role in our lives. The panel discussion will be led by Ella Petersson.

Making Something Out Of Nothing was recorded on 1st September 2021 with Emmi Christensson soprano (she will sing it live in April) and the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Joachim Gustafsson (music director of Bogotá Philharmonic Orchestra). The song will be released on vinyl with Emmi singing on side A and an instrumental version on side B. It’s out for the festival.

All info about tickets and the festival itself you will find HERE. Direct link to the event related to Per Gessle & Tommi Haglund’s discussion and the song premiere on Ticketmaster’s website is HERE.

Photo by Lars Nordin