Struwwelpeter
From Free net encyclopedia
Der Struwwelpeter (1845) is a popular German children's book by Heinrich Hoffmann.
Image:H Hoffmann Struwwel 03.jpg
Struwwelpeter (slovenly Peter), is an illustrated collection of stories intended for children. The stories include: "Struwwelpeter", "Die Geschichte vom bösen Friederich" (The Story of Cruel Frederick), "Die gar traurige Geschichte mit dem Feuerzeug" (The Dreadful Story of Pauline and the Matches), "Die Geschichte von den schwarzen Buben" (The Story of the Inky Boys), "Die Geschichte von dem wilden Jäger" (The Story of the Wild Huntsman), "Die Geschichte vom Daumenlutscher" (The Story of Little Suck-a-Thumb), "Die Geschichte vom Suppen-Kaspar" (The Story of Augustus who did not have any Soup), "Die Geschichte vom Zappel-Philipp" (The Story of Fidgety Philip), "Die Geschichte von Hans Guck-in-die-Luft" (The Story of Johnny Look-in-the-Air), "Die Geschichte vom fliegenden Robert" (The Story of Flying Robert).
Hoffmann, a Frankfurt physician, wanted to buy a picture book for his son for Christmas in 1844. Not impressed by what the stores had to offer, he instead bought a notebook and wrote his own stories and pictures. Hoffmann was persuaded by friends to anonymously publish the book as Lustige Geschichten und drollige Bilder mit 15 schön kolorierten Tafeln für Kinder von 3-6 Jahren in 1845. It was not until the third edition in 1858 that the book was published under the title Struwwelpeter. The first English translation appeared in 1848.
While Struwwelpeter is somewhat notorious for its perceived brutal treatment of the erring children, it has been influential on many later children's books, most notably Charlie and the Chocolate Factory; in German, Max und Moritz bears a strong resemblance in style to Struwwelpeter. Struwwelpeter has been translated into several languages, including one English translation by Mark Twain, as well as made into many spin-offs and even transformed into propaganda. Unfortunately, because it is a children's book and therefore not often taken seriously, and because it is written as poetry, most English translations are unsatisfactory in one respect or another. In 2006, Fantagraphics Books published the first completely digital version of Struwwelpeter, reinterpreted and illustrated by Bob Staake.
Shockheaded Peter - A Junk Opera
Shockheaded Peter (SHP) is a musical entertainment based on Struwwelpeter, created and devised by Julian Bleach, Anthony Cairns, Julian Crouch, Graeme Gilmour, Tamzin Griffin, Jo Pocock, Phelim McDermott, Michael Morris and The Tiger Lillies (Martyn Jacques, Adrian Huge and Adrian Stout).
SHP combinines elements of pantomime and puppetry with musical versions of the poems. Generally, the songs closely follow the text of the poems, but there are significant differences, tending towards giving the songs a much darker tone than the poems. Whereas the children in the poems only sometimes die, in the musical they all do. Fidgety Phil ends up being stabbed to death by the cutlery he throws into the air, and the bullyboys don't get dipped in black ink, instead they get their heads cut off. This makes the musical a much darker entertainment than the original book, and somewhat disturbing to younger children, but undoubtedly contributed to its huge popularity with adults.
Another difference between the book and the musical is the essentially mimed play concerning the parents of Struwwelpeter. Instead of simply being a dirty boy, Struwwelpeter is a monster of sorts, arriving as a baby brought by a stork and already sporting talon-like nails and hideous hair. In disgust, his parents eventually bury him under the floorboards of their home, where his sinister scratching eventually drives his mother to madness and his father to drink. Segments of this play are interspersed with the musical numbers, providing an element of linear plot development lacking from the songs themselves.
The entertainment is guided by an MC, the self-proclaimed "greatest actor that has ever existed", who warns the audience of the horrors to come, comments darkly on the fates of the children and adults, and generally makes a mess of things. It is, as he proclaims towards the end, "just a little bit different".
Commissioned by the West Yorkshire Playhouse in Leeds and the Hammersmith Lyric in West London, the show debuted in 1998 in Leeds before moving to London for three weeks at each theatre. The response of audience and critics led to three extended returns to the Lyric Hammersmith as well as runs in London's West End and world tours, with a slightly shorter but faster-moving show.
At the time, shows at the Lyric were not eligible for Olivier Awards, but during its first West End run in 2001, SHP was nominated for the Best Entertainment (won), Best Supporting Performance in a Musical or Entertainment (Martyn Jacques, won), Best Set Designer (Julian Crouch and Graeme Gilmour) and Best Costume Designer (Kevin Pollard) categories.
For all but one of the runs, the show featured the Tiger Lillies, an English cabaret act best known for their eccentric musical style and the falsetto voice of the lead singer Martyn Jacques, and they have a CD featuring the songs from Shockheaded Peter [1]. For the 2002 London run, the Tiger Lillies were replaced with David Thomas and Two Pale Boys with mixed results.
The main U.S. production closed on May 29, 2005, but a U.S. tour is in the works for 2006. Because of the popularity of the original book in Germany, several different productions of Shockheaded Peter have also been put on there, including at least one where Martyn Jacques' role was performed by a woman.
The German Industrial metal band Rammstein recorded a version of "Die gar traurige Geschichte mit dem Feuerzeug" on their 2005 album Rosenrot titled Hilf mir.
Popular culture references
- On March 16, 2006, the NBC network sitcom The Office (US) aired an episode entitled "Take Your Daughter To Work Day". In it, Dwight Schrute begins to read the story to the children before he is interrupted by Michael Scott.