"Everyone who has seen him knows that he is a wrestler, a chess master, a poet, a rock and a little forest violet," the jury writes in its citation.
Johan Holmberg made his debut in 1987 and worked for many years as an actor and director with independent theatre groups such as Teater Bastard and Teater Bhopa.
He made his debut at Dramaten in Stockholm in 2003 and has since played more than 60 roles at the theatre. He is currently starring in Molière's "The Misanthrope" and Roy Andersson's "A Love Story". Among the films and television productions Holmberg has appeared in are "The Castle in the Air", "Beck - The Hospital Murders" and, most recently, the SVT series "Svärtan".
The O'Neill Scholarship, worth 45,000 kronor, is awarded to "highly deserving artists at the theatre". The money comes from the rights to Eugene O'Neill's "Long Day's Journey into Night" and several other works by the American author. O'Neill and his widow bequeathed the rights to the Royal Swedish Opera in gratitude for the great attention his plays had received there.
