drama privately under the tutelage of Knut Almlöf and Betty Deland. In early 1877, she debuted at the Royal Dramatic Theatre in Stockholm in two works. She took the role of Camille in A Theatre Play ""En Teaterpjäs" by Louis Leroy and the title role of Jane Eyre in a play by Charlotte Birch-Pfeiffer. Her debut was considered a moderate success, and she took up an engagement as an actor at the Royal Dramatic Theatre that lasted until 1881. She also performed at the Swedish theater in Helsinki, Finland, during the period 1882–93. She was a director and leading lady at a Scandinavian experimental theater founded by Strindberg in Copenhagen in 1889, where she played the title role in Miss Julie and Mme X in The Stronger. She worked as an acting tutor in Helsinki from 1894; one of her students was Martha Hedman. Although critics generally commended her grace, her natural way of acting, and the intelligence of her interpretations, they also noted that her performances lacked energy and passion and that she had a weak voice. Strindberg wrote several plays for her that were designed to showcase her acting style—among these are counted Miss Julie and The Creditors (role of Tekla—and she is considered to have succeeded best in these roles. After 1877, von Essen wrote articles for newspapers and publications and translated plays. She was a reporter for Morgenbladet newspaper in Helsingfors, Finland, in 1876 and in Copenhagen, Denmark in 1881. She continued with her translation work after she moved to Finland in 1893. She also gave concert recitals. In popular culture In 1978 Swedish author Per Olov Enquist premiered his Strindberg-focused play The Night of the Tribades: A Play from 1889 (later retitled The Tribades), in which von Essen is a key character. Citations, notes and references Cited sources Sigrid (Siri) Sofia Matilda Elisabet Essen, von, urn:sbl:15517, Svenskt biografiskt lexikon (art av Torsten Eklund.), hämtad 2014-03-05. Dotti, Marco. 2010. "Lettere da un inferno futuro. Strindberg, dieci appunti nella vita del Padre", in Saveria Chemotti (ed.), Padri nostri. Archetipi e modelli delle relazioni tra padri e figlie, Padova: Il Poligrafo,2010, pp. 281–298. . Enquist, Per Olov. Plays: 1: The Night of Tribades, Rain Snakes, The Hour of the Lynx, The Image Makers. London: Bloomsbury, 2004. Lagercrantz, Olof. August Strindberg. Trans. Anselm Hollo. New York: Farrar Straus Giroux, 1984. Meyer, Michael. 1985. Strindberg: A Biography. Oxford Lives ser.