Mathilda was daughter of the musician Ficker at the Kungliga Hovkapellet, grandchild of the famous Swedish actor Andreas Widerberg and niece of the primadonna Henriette Widerberg.
Daughter of Christian Fredrik Ficker, a musician at Kungliga Hovkapellet, and sister of the opera singer Mathilda Gelhaar, she was enrolled in Dramatens elevskola in 1830.