Sunnfjord Museum presents an exciting new exhibit, Fiddlers and Funny Ladies: Entertainment in Norwegian America. This exhibit is part of the 2025 emigration jubilee celebrating 200 years since large-scale migration from Norway to the US and Canada began in 1825. The exhibit at Sunnfjord Museum tells the story of emigration from the local regions of Sunnfjord, Nordfjord, and Sogn through the perspectives of musicians and comedians with backgrounds in these areas. Meet comediennes who entertained Norwegian immigrant audiences in Chicago and Minneapolis, and journey to the Pacific Northwest to learn about musicians and dancers who took musical traditions with them in their journeys to new frontiers.
Norwegians who emigrated during the largest wave of migration in the late 1800s and early 1900s worked hard to establish themselves and thrive in their new surroundings. But how did they relax after long days on the farm or in the factory? How did they use humor to confront the challenges of living in a new language and with new customs? What inspired emigrants to fiddle and sing, to dance and laugh – and how can these insights help us understand the development of immigrant communities in the past and in the present? Fiddlers and Funny Ladies: Entertainment in Norwegian America takes a closer look at these questions. Welcome to the opening on June 1!
