The Week in Germany: Culture

June 27, 2008

Adaptation of Michael Ende’s Novel 'The Neverending Story'
Premieres on American Stage

Journey: Atreyu rides atop Falkor, a flying luck dragon, in the land of Fantastica. Courtesy of Imagination Stage. © Scott Suchman

One of the greatest fantasy novels of all time, Die unendliche Geschichte (The Neverending Story) is an epic adventure that has become a favorite of young and old alike. For the first time ever, the classic story by German author Michael Ende will be performed on an English-speaking stage. The play, which is an adaptation by acclaimed Canadian playwright David S. Craig, will premiere at Imagination Stage in Bethesda, Maryland, before continuing on to other cities.

Great Story: Bastian hides in the attic of his school to read The Neverending Story. Courtesy of Imagination Stage. © Scott Suchman

Readers easily identify with "The Neverending Story’s" young character Bastian as he finds himself unable to stop reading a very captivating book. In it, he discovers the mythical land of Fantastica (Phantásien in German), an extraordinary place which is being destroyed by the Nothing. The Childlike Empress sends the unlikely hero Atreyu, a boy around Bastian’s age, on a quest to find the one who can save Fantastica and its cast of characters. Bastian had been warned that this story truly engrosses its readers, and he soon finds himself unable to escape its narrative.

Award-winning author Michael Ende (1929-1995) began "The Neverending Story" in February 1977 and finished the two-volume, 432-page novel in the record-breakingly cold winter of 1978-1979. The book quickly became an international bestseller, and its author received multiple literary awards.

In 1984, a film version of "The Neverending Story" was created by Wolfgang Petersen, director of the highly acclaimed film Das Boot. Despite Ende’s overall disappointment and subsequent legal battle over the interpretation of certain scenes, the film was a huge success and widely viewed by young audiences in the US and Germany.

Creative Mind: Author Michael Ende with one of his turtles. © picture-alliance/dpa/dpaweb

Michael Ende also penned many other well-known stories such as Momo and Jim Knopf und Lukas der Lokomotivführer (Jim Button and Luke the Engine Driver), whose characters were further popularized by the interpretations of the Augsburger Puppenkiste marionette theater productions, which were broadcast on German television, starting in 1953.

Germany.info and TWIG readers get a special discount!

The Imagination Stage is offering readers of Germany.info and TWIG a $2 discount off the general admission price, which starts at $10. To receive the discount, simply mention the "Embassy of Germany" when you call to reserve tickets or when you purchase them at the box office. The Neverending Story runs at the Imagination Stage from June 24 to August 10. The show is approximately 90 minutes in length and is recommended for the young at heart, ages 6 and up. 

This theatrical production of The Neverending Story was co-commissioned by Imagination Stage and Seattle Children’s Theatre, and it has received a prestigious grant from the National Endowment for the Arts. In addition to the performances in Bethesda and Seattle, it will also be produced at Childsplay in Tempe, Arizona, and the Dallas Children’s Theatre. 

Links:

Imagination Stage

Michael Ende (in English and German)

Augsburger Puppenkiste (in German only)

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