In the winter of 1983, a two-storey house in the forests outside Norrköping is shaken by a violent argument, and a secret slips out of a mother. Seven-year-old Andrev learns that the man he has always called his father is not his father. His real father lives in a faraway country and has hair down to his shoulders. “Like an Indian,” his mother says, gesturing towards her elbow to help the boy understand.

Something stirs inside Andrev, because this is the best thing he has ever heard. It feels as though he is the boy in a book about a boy who discovers that his father is a king in a magical land, and that a spirit will come to take him there. But no spirits arrive – only new fathers who aren’t his.

What critics have said about the production:
“Jävla karlar shows what a master Shanti Roney is”
“Bloody brilliant” (DN)
“Magnetic monologue” (Kulturnyheterna)
“Shanti Roney excels” (Fokus)
“Powerful” / “Deeply moving” (Aftonbladet)
“Masterful performance” (SvD)

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Andrev Walden’s irresistibly entertaining and deeply moving book Jävla karlar, about growing up in the rubble of the 1968 movement, is one of the most successful and beloved Swedish novels of the 21st century.

Sydsvenskan called it “outstanding literature”, Kulturnytt said that Andrev Walden had “written a classic”, SvD described it as “a remarkable achievement”, and Aftonbladet noted that Walden had managed to make both “trivialities and horrors sparkle”.

In autumn 2023, Andrev Walden received the August Prize for the book. It has also been awarded the Adlibris Prize for Debut of the Year and the Stockholm Prize for Literature. The book was the best-selling novel in Sweden in 2023, and Andrev’s account of his childhood has also been a major success in Norway, where it became the best-selling translated novel of 2024. In autumn 2025, it was released in German (Scheisskerle) and English (Bloody Awful in Different Ways).

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Cast & creative team
Actor: Shanti Roney
Director & writer: Eva Dahlman
Author: Andrev Walden
Set & costume designer: Magdalena Åberg
Make-up designer: Sara Klänge
Lighting designer: Ellen Ruge
Assistant director & prompter: Git Brännström
Technical coordinator: P-J Jansson
Lighting operators: Stizze Larsson / P-J Jansson
Sound technician: Pelle Meyer
Set carpenter: Klas Norén, Setup Production
Artwork: Jan Stenmarck and Iza Boëthius
Press photos: Iza Boëthius
PR: Helena Iles for Iles PR
Co-producers: Jonas Axelsson for Bokförlaget Polaris and Tova and Conrad Nyqvist for Scala Produktion
Producer: Sara Huss Kleimar

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Good to know before your visit:
Age limit: 13 years. Read more about age limits and ID checks at our events
Duration: Approx. 2 hours 30 minutes, including a 20-minute interval.
Langugage: Swedish

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Craving for a lovely mingling before the show?
Before the show, The Wood Hotel by Elite serves drinks and light snacks in the South foyer.
Serving opens 45 minutes before the event starts.

Welcome!