Music by: Benny Andersson Book and lyrics by: Bj�rn Ulvaeus

Directed by: Lars Rudolfsson Based on the Emigrants novels by Vilhelm Moberg

A young woman named Kristina, her husband Karl-Oscar and their children live in Sweden in 1848, but due to starvation, they are forced to move to the States (the Land of Dreams). The horrible journey across the ocean takes 4 months, and the culture shock when they arrive is indescribable since none of them speak English, and they have hardly been outside their own village before. But now there is no going back...Read the complete synopsis. You can take a look through the lyrics in their original Swedish.

The musical is based on a series of four novels by Vilhelm Moberg that deal with the impact of Swedish settlers on the development of the American west in the 19th century. At one point, there was an average of 200 people leaving Sweden every day! The themes of love and loss, of leaving home for a new, uncertain future, are things that all of us can identify with. Read a bit more about the books or find out more about how they formed the basis for the development of the show.

I only have one CD of this show so far! Read my review of the CD, or listen to a clip from one of my favourite songs. Or, take a look at some pictures from the show that I've collected.

I haven't had a chance to see this show yet, but I would love to see it some day, in Swedish, or (even better for me, since I don't understand a word of Swedish :-), in English. There was talk of an English production, but I'm not quite sure what happened to it. If I ever do get a chance to see the show, I'll be sure to add my thoughts here!

Since my only exposure to the show has been the CD, all of my favourites come from there! :-) Take a look at my thoughts on some of the performers that are on the recording. Once you're done looking around here, check out some of the other fantastic Kristina Fr�n Duvem�la websites that are out there.