Interview: Peter Jöback, Ellen Lindblad, Hanna Lindblad and Edward af Sillén of CHICAGO at Oscarsteatern

On September 10, Chicago will premiere at the Oscarsteatern with a fantastic team both on stage and behind the scenes. In the lead roles you will see Broadway and West End star Peter Jöback together with sisters Hanna and Ellen Lindblad under the direction of Edward af Sillén (director of the Max Martin musical &Julia, Stalker on Broadway among other shows).

Ellen Lindblad plays Roxie Hart who ends up in a women's prison after a love triangle with deadly ending. In the prison she meets vaudeville star Velma Kelly (Hanna Lindblad) who is as dangerous as she is ambitious. With the help of lawyer Billy Flynn (Peter Jöback) they make the courtroom their stage where they twist and turn the truth. Roxie's timid and "invisible" husband Amos is played by Ola Forssmed and Mama Morton by Laila Adele. In addion to the lead roles there will be a high-class ensemble.

The four of them highlights how much they will enjoy to be working with each other and the fantastic creative team with Zain Odelstål - choreography, Lehna Edwall - set design and costume design and Sara Klänge - mask and wig design at the forefront. The fantastic commercial already shows that producers are investing heavily in offering the musical audience a luxurious set.

Director Edward af Sillén calls it an A-team to work with, where each role is carefully cast and together they will be able to create the ultimate Chicago set that it is meant to be. Peter Jöback was obvious as Billy Flynn and Hanna is completely unique as a musical artist. Edward goes on to say that he first saw Ellen in Matilda at Stadsteatern in Stockholm where she that performance was the understudy to Matilda's mother. He was so impressed by her, both her dancing and comic side, that he wrote a letter and told her about it and now they will work together for the first time. He has previously worked with Laila Adele in Dreamgirls and according to Edward she will be a perfect fit in the role of Mama Morton with her powerful voice.

For Edward it has been a dream since he was 16 and saw Chicago with Petra Nielsen as Roxie and Jan Malmsjö at the Oscarteate, to one day be able to be part of the creative team of the production. Now the dream comes true at the same theater. Edward has recently been to New York and watched Chicago to get inspiration and a feel for how it works today. However the production here will be a completely new vision in terms of scenery. In New York they have the 90s production with the orchestra on stage but here Lehna Edwall will create her own format, well adapted for the stage at the Oscarteatern.

Hanna, Ellen and Peter agree that these are dream roles for them. Getting to perform Kander/Ebbs hits like “All That Jazz” “Razzel Dazzel” and “Roxie” will be magical. For Ellen, Cell Block Tango is a favorite and even though her character Roxie is not in it, she says it will be wonderful to see her sister Hanna in it.

It seems unique that two sisters are playing Roxie and Vemla in the same production, something they think will be incredibly fun. There is a competition between Roxie and Velma in the show, but it is not something they experience between them privately. Hanna says that she thinks it is great fun to play with Ellen and they have done it before in A Chorus Line at Stadsteatern. She finds it hard to take her eyes off Ellen when she is on stage because she is so good. Hanna is so happy that Ellen nailed her audition so they now can be part of it together. "A memory for life". Ellen highlights that they know each other very well and there is a dynamic between them that they can now use. This time they will also play against each other in a different way than in A Chorus Line and she is looking forward to that. In addition to playing together, Ellen is glad that Hanna will be more in Stockholm for a while as she now lives in Gothenburg.

Neither Ellen nor Hanna have played with Peter before and are looking forward to playing opposite this musical icon. Peter in turn emphasizes that it is the girls who are the main  roles in the musical and that they are perfect for the roles.

Billy Flynn is a role Peter has wanted to play and was asked to play it when he played Phantom in Phantom of the Opera on Broadway 2013, but it didn't fit with his family life. But this time he immediately accepted. He is enjoying to return to the musical scene after being away from it for 5 years and this time to soley focus on being an actor, not a co-producer aswell as previous. Peter thinks Kander/Ebbs musicals are important and current and Cabaret and Kiss of a Spiderwoman are also his favorites. They address brave topics and at the same time include of fantastic song and dance acts. There is a darkness in them that intrigues him. He liked Richard Gere's version of Billy Flynn and he wants to make his Billy Flynn sharp, black and poisonous, The exact shape of it  will develop during the process and the rehearsals with the rest of the ensamble.

Ellen is nerding out the material to shape her Roxie and finds it exciting that it has a real-life background story with two women who murdered their husbands. At her audition, she interpretaded Roxie with a bit more comical and charming side. A woman who can trick a man into doing whatever she wants. She sees Roxie as manipulative and can get anything. Sly and street smart. Ellen also highlights that she likes to play a role where women are allowed to be comical too.

Velma is an iconic role for Hanna, she is glamorous, dangerous and has a sense of humor. Hannar has previously work with Edward as a director in The Drowsy Chaperone and compliment him for way of working with the actors and gives the actors the freedom to let them loose and create their roles. It is very inspiring and makes you want to give it your all. He creates a sense of security in the entire ensemble. Hanna also says that she wants to see how raw and crazy her Velma can be.

Hanna just expressed what Edward himself realized when he directed Stalker in New York. An experience that he is incredibly grateful to have had. He was very warmly welcomed by everyone there. For him as a director, it is important to have a nice working atmosphere and that his job is to make the actors shine on stage. In order for that to be successful, it is equally important that everyone around is noticed and he makes sure to learn the names of all the technicians and others who work in the production. The nice working atmosphere and that everyone feels safe was something that was appreciated in New York. Even if you have only met Edward for a short time, he gives that feeling and energy to everyone he meets.

Right now there is only a week left until the premiere (February 19) at &Julia where Edward is the director. Unlike Chicago, it is a relatively new musical that has been played for a few years on the West End and Broadway and now for the first time in Sweden. He has previously done a lot of comedy and you might think that there is a difference between directing a comedy and a musical, but that is not the case, Edward says. In comedy it is about finding the rhythm just like in a musical. The rhythm needs to be followed for the comedy to arise and there are many similarities in the way of working with comedies and musicals, but his favorite genre is still musical. Edward, Hanna and Ellen say that it is the variety in what you work with that brings out the fun and become dream roles and dream jobs. Hanna could imagine working more with film in the future – it was so fun to work with the commercial for Chicago, she says. Ellen on her side would like to do something completely different someday – maybe a dark Norén play at the Dramaten to develop the serious side of acting.

But from fall September 2026 Chicago has their full focus to make this dream come. There will definitely be a number of buses from Hanna and Ellens hometown Motala to see the city's big musical stars at the same time in this classic musical.

Ellen and Hanna want to give the audience a musical experience at the very highest level. They want you to feel the energy and as Hanna said – Jazz on into the night.

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