The play is a series of short scenes. Putschenelle fights with a blind man who has hit him with his stick, throws his child out of the window, and knocks his wife unconscious. Then we see him stroking his dog Phylax. The next scene depicts two Moors dancing, which Putschenelle eventually joins in on: he knocks out both dancers. He gets on a horse, which throws him off, and the doctor arrives, and they fight with sticks. An officer recruits him to become a soldier, but Putschenelle proves too undisciplined and, when he has had enough, chases the officer with his stick. He is finally arrested and sentenced to death, but he hangs the executioner himself with a curse. The devil arrives, they fight, and Putschenelle kills him.

Glove-puppet

Not specified

Germany

Hamburg

Printed summary

Stick

Animal

Horse

Infant

Father

Household

Couple

Murder

Serial murder

Soldier

Army

Military

Discipline

Rebellion

Insubordination

Justice

Cruelty

Gallows

Farcical

German

Leben und Taten Putschenelle, der sogar den Teufel aus der Welt geschafft

Blind

Mrs Putschenelle

Child

Black Man

Doctor

Officer

Sbire

Executioner

Devil

Address to the public

Intervention of the audience

Song

Blind character

Domestic scene

Blow-with-a-stick

Dialect

Hanging scene

Final intervention of the devil

Dance

Putschenelle ist tot, vivat Putschenelle!

Putschenelle is dead, long live Putschenelle!

Casper is accused by a farmer of stealing his hay and the cart and cow that went with it. He tries to bargain over the compensation and settles the matter with a stick. In court, he insults the judge and beats the policeman. The peasant asks for him to be hanged, but Casper finds out and hangs him instead. Then he beats the policeman again. The judge wants him tortured and executed, but Casper beats him to death.

Young audiences

Sonneberg

Printed

Theft

Retribution

Punishment

Torture

Police

Jail

Judgment

Prosecution

Violence

Assassination

Embezzlement

Silliness

Wickedness

Ironic

Kasperl

Judge

Policeman

Peasant (man)

Versified passages

Flying machine

Parodic trial

Stichomythia

Foul language register

Comic equivocation

Murder on stage

Epilogue

Casper soll ins Gefängnis kommen

Casper must go to jail

After a prologue in which Casper announces, among other things, that he is going to cut off the ears of children who are not well-behaved, the performance begins. Casper announces that, out of boredom, he wants to become a soldier. He shows his insubordination towards the non-commissioned officer who undertakes to train him by beating him with sticks. The non-commissioned officer sends him to the devil, who arrives: Casper kills him. He returns to his wife, announcing that he will be a general. She hits him with a broom, takes his stick back and they fight.