Catharina Anna Grandon de Hochepied
Encyclopedia
Catharina Anna Grandon de Hochepeid (21 May 1767 – 1803) was a Hungarian and Swedish noble. As the wife of the Swedish ambassador in the Ottoman Empire
, she became the likely first woman ever to have performed on stage in Islam
ic Turkey
.
Born to the Hungarian count Jan Daniel Grandon de Hochepied, she married Gerhard von Heidenstam, the Swedish ambassador of the Ottoman Empire, in 1783 and moved with him to Istanbul, where they lived.
Hedienstam organized an amateur theatre at the Swedish hotel in the Pera
district of the city. In 1786, the theatre opened with the opera L’ecole des Jaloux, the first Italian Opera ever performed in Turkey and, likely, in the Muslim world. The music was played by the embassy staff. Catharina Anna participated in the opera, together with a couple of other amateur actresses from the embassy staff's families, in front of three hundred spectators, thereby becoming perhaps the first woman ever to perform on a public stage in a Muslim country. She was complimented on her performance by members of the audience, which consisted of both foreign diplomats and Muslim nobles.
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
, she became the likely first woman ever to have performed on stage in Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
ic Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
.
Born to the Hungarian count Jan Daniel Grandon de Hochepied, she married Gerhard von Heidenstam, the Swedish ambassador of the Ottoman Empire, in 1783 and moved with him to Istanbul, where they lived.
Hedienstam organized an amateur theatre at the Swedish hotel in the Pera
Beyoglu
Beyoğlu is a district located on the European side of İstanbul, Turkey, separated from the old city by the Golden Horn...
district of the city. In 1786, the theatre opened with the opera L’ecole des Jaloux, the first Italian Opera ever performed in Turkey and, likely, in the Muslim world. The music was played by the embassy staff. Catharina Anna participated in the opera, together with a couple of other amateur actresses from the embassy staff's families, in front of three hundred spectators, thereby becoming perhaps the first woman ever to perform on a public stage in a Muslim country. She was complimented on her performance by members of the audience, which consisted of both foreign diplomats and Muslim nobles.