
Printed
38 pages
Author(s)
Besuch aus dem Weltraum
Ein Kasperlespiel nicht nur zur Verkehrserziehung
This "play for Kasper not only for traffic education", as the subtitle states, is a continuation of the so-called Verkehrskasper (traffic Kasper) shows: animations with puppets created in 1956 in the Federal Republic of Germany to educate young children about traffic safety. It contributes to the renewal of this genre by introducing a robot character and by the humorous treatment of the action. The author recommends keeping a part of improvisation in the dialogue and, in the foreword, sets out two possibilities of interpretation: either by emphasising the educational value, or by favouring the pleasure of theatrical play.
The play is presented as one that can be performed either by puppets or by children.
A lost traveller gets the help he needs to get back on his way
During the prologue, a traffic policeman expresses his boredom to the children in the audience. Kasper arrives and, at the request of the policeman, decides to tell a story, the one depicted in the play. The robot dwarf CR 93, known as Blinky, came from the Milky Way and wanted to take part in a rally on the planet Mars, but a computer error caused him to land in Kasper's town. His on-board computer has to be repaired quickly as his battery is almost empty. Carelessly crossing the street, Blinky is saved by Gretl and the Policeman. While Kasper, Gretl and the Policeman teach Blinky how to cross the street safely, the brigand Atze tries to steal the battery to sell it at the flea market, but Kasper and his friends get Atze arrested, fix the computer and even allow the robot nicknamed "Blinki" to exchange a few last words with an emergency call station the Martian has fallen in love with, before the latter leaves.
Publications and translations
Peter KLUSEN. Besuch aus dem Weltraum, Weinheim, Deutscher Theaterverlag, 1994.
