Der kleine Häwelmann

In the organizer's words:

Theodor Storm wrote the story "Der kleine Häwelmann" for his son Hans in 1849. Dr. Julia Kretschmer-Wachsmann, better known to all visitors to the Hamburg Planetarium as "Astrella, the Star Fairy", has now turned it into a colorful, cheerful story for all sky-watchers aged three and up.

The content of the fairy tale is quickly told: Little Häwelmann, the "Hätschelkind", doesn't want to go to sleep and keeps being tossed to and fro in his rollaway bed: "More, more"! he calls incessantly. When his mother is long asleep, the little one rolls out of the room on a moonbeam, through town and forest and up to the stars. The little sky stormer is brave, curious, adventurous and full of life.

Perhaps Kretschmer-Wachsmann was particularly inspired during the lockdown. As a mother of four children, everything was demanded of her: her creativity, but also many a night.

She wanted to free Storm's fairy tale from its "dusty" image. His tale is not a cute bedtime story, but the language and images have an enormous power and message all of their own, which is perhaps more relevant than ever: always faster - higher - further. But where to? Fairy tales can reveal new perspectives, especially when people are going through new, unfamiliar experiences together. When society is called upon to reflect on what is important. This is the hour of fairy tales, of poetry, of music and painting, in other words, of art in the all-encompassing sense.

The fact that little Häwelmann is accompanied so enchantingly by music on his nocturnal journey to the moon is thanks not only to Kretschmer-Wachsmann but also to the Hamburg composer Ben Schadow. Together, they have brought Theodor Storm's story to life with their specially composed songs. Jan Siggel, a magician with a pencil, took up Kretschmer-Wachsmann's wishes and ideas for Häwelmann's nocturnal journey and - in collaboration with Sascha Kriegel, Head of Production and Technology, and Jan Goinka - animated them The Planetarium team finally brings the magic of the illustrations, which unmistakably depict Hamburg landmarks, to the starry dome. Last but not least, Thomas W. Kraupe contributed to this great collaboration of the arts in an advisory capacity.

Tetje Mierendorf lends his voice to the moon and also acts as a wonderful narrator. No one interprets the golden rooster on the church spire better than Bernd Begemann. Annett Louisan's incomparable voice is a great match for Hinze the cat. When the sun rises at the end of the story, it does so brightly and radiantly thanks to the vocal power of musical actress Nadine Schreier. Kristian N. Borchert normally sings in the "Neue Knabenchor Hamburg". Here he expresses the carefree adventurousness of the little pest Häwelmann with his angelic voice. We experience the "star fairy Astrella" in a very unusual way: as the mother of the "moon traveler".