Faust - Johann Christoph Winters

Faust

Eine Geschichte der Vorzeit

Johann Christoph Winters | 1847 | Cologne, Germany
Genre (as defined by the author)
Eine Geschichte der Vorzeit
Characters
Faust, Hänneschen, Ein Student, Mehrere Bauern, Ein Wirth, Bärbel, Der Fürst der Hölle, Mefistofilus, Helena, Teufel, Parlicko, Parlacko
Number of acts
3
Note

Scheible was a German bookseller and editor. He is mostly known for his periodical Das Kloster (The Convent), which was published in Stuttgart between 1845 and 1850. In it, he took an interest in all forms of expression in the German language. Among the many sources he published, many puppet plays can be found. This is how, barely a year after Simrock, Scheible published six different versions of Faust, including the one printed by August von Below in 1836. This version comes from Johann Christoph Winters’ repertoire for rod puppets in Cologne. The plot is simpler than in other plays from the same period, but it is enriched with elements from the Volksbuch, a “story of Doctor Johann Faust” published in 1587 by printer Johann Spie which has since become a very popular book in the German-speaking world.

Plot summary

A sorcerer devotes himself to the devil

Faust invokes Satan, who appears as Mephistopheles. Faust devotes himself to the devil in exchange for the accomplishment of his every wish. He also demands that demons be at the service of his servant, Hänneschen, who will henceforth have the spirits of Parlicko and Parlacko at his disposal. In an inn, Faust gets angry at a prying student and makes a fire appear in his glass of wine. After that, he asks Mephistopheles to take him and Hänneschen first to Mount Olympus and then to a beautiful garden. Only one unfulfilled desire remains for Faust: finding a wife. Hänneschen seizes this opportunity to ask Parlicko and Parlacko to bring him his beloved Bärbel so he can marry her. Mephistopheles brings Faust the beautiful Helena, but when he tries to kiss her, she changes into an evil creature. The room turns into an infernal cave, and Faust is doomed amidst the flames.

Related works
Historia von D. Johann Fausten1587
Composition date
First half of 19th century

First performance

Cologne, Germany, First half of 19th century

Publications and translations

Publication

Johann Scheible: Das Kloster. Weltlich und Geistlich. Stuttgart, Johann Scheible, 1847

Editors
Johann Scheible
Language
German
Literary tones
Tragic, Fantastic
Animations techniques
Single rod marionettes
Audience
Not specified
Licence
Public domain

Key-words

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Written by

Jean Boutan