H.C. The King Of Fairy Tales is a biographical musical written by Jan Khouback and Björn de Verdier . It is H.C. Andersen´s own story about the ugly scorned duckling who grew up to be a beautiful magnificent swan. It is also a social epic about the fascinating ascent on the class ladder accomplished on his own initiative and in a very wilful way, by the poor fatherless shoemaker´s son. His immensely abundant fantasy and empathy together with a vain self-centeredness were some of the conditions which created one of the most famous authors in the history of the world.
H.C. Andersen´s eager urge for fame conquered many of his fears and took him to the Royal Theatre in Copenhagen where he at the beginning was a complete failure. However we must always remember that he was then only an uneducated boy of fourteen.
This musical is based on H.C. Andersen´s autobiography: The Fairy Tale of My Life but also on many other literary sources. One of the most important being: H.C. Andersen: Mennesket og Digteren by Elias Bredsdorff. Finally, the musical would never have been born without the lovely, wondrous and fanciful fairy tales.

Below you'll find the story line of the musical which exists in a Swedish as well as an English version. If you want to know more about H.C. King of Fairy Tales, please mail to Jan Khouback or Björn de Verdier.

S t o r y l i n e

SCENE 1

The flight of migratory birds has always fascinated people in all countries and it has been the inspiration of countless legends and fairy tales. Scene 1 takes place somewhere in a Middle East country. Some women, working in the fields, look up at the sky where a flock of big white swans are passing on their way to a mysterious country way up in the north. The song that the women sing is directed to them.

SCENE 2

The Town Hall Square in Copenhagen at the statue of H.C. Andersen. A guided tourist group pass by. Miss Dancer is waiting for her boyfriend, but he doesn´t show up. She starts singing What Do You Know About That Thing Called Love to the statue. H.C. comes alive and they sing the song as a duet and H.C. promises to tell Miss Dancer (and the rest of us) his story "so you all will get it right".

SCENE 3

Odense, Munkemøllestræde, outside H.C.´s home of childhood in the summer of 1819. Some street urchins find a toy doll in the street. Finding out that it has been made by H.C. they start making fun of him. H.C. is the laughing-stock of all the kids in the neighbourhood because he gives himself airs in spite of his simple origin.

H.C.´s grandfather, "Madcap", passes by and the street urchins surround him teasing him. Knud, the boy next door, manages to catch H.C. himself. Now the boys start bullying him. H.C. sings I´m Not A Fool. H.C.´s mother shows up and rushes to help him. Knud´s mother comes out and the two mothers start quarreling.

Shortly after, the annual procession of the craft-guilds passes by. H.C. tells his mother of his dream - to become famous by becoming an actor at the Royal Theatre of Copenhagen. His mother doesn´t like his plans. H.C. ´s grandmother and an old fortune teller enter. H.C.´s grandmother supports his plans and the fortune teller predicts fame and fortune, but also deep sorrows for H.C. H.C.´s mother worries about her son and she sings He´s My Son

SCENE 4

In the textile mill. The workers - mostly young boys, among them Knud - are whistling the song Hold Your Horses while they are working. They also tease H.C. and he sings Hold Your Horses to make them stop. It is a success, but Knud thinks that H.C. has got a very high-pitched voice. Maybe he is a girl? Knud and the others start undressing H.C. in order to find out. When the mill whistle sounds, the boys disappear leaving H.C. naked and devastated on the floor.

A dream sequence follows where some of the characters from H.C.´s future fairy tales enter the stage. They sing and dance the following songs for him; The Top And The Darning-Needle, The Shepherdess And The Chimney-Sweep and What Would Be Our Future? In the songs they praise him for giving them eternal life.

When they have finished, H.C.´s grandmother comes onto the stage and she comforts him with the song You´re The Most Beautiful Swan In The World. The characters lift H.C. up on a big swan that will carry him to Copenhagen. When H.C. says goodbye to his grandmother she hangs an amulet around his neck, to bring him luck.

SCENE 1

H.C. has arrived to the outskirts of Copenhagen and he is watching the city in front of him, while singing The First Feel of You

SCENE 2

A doorway of a noble house owned by the famous dancer Madame Schall. H.C. says a prayer for his future. A seller of tickets from the Royal Theatre enters. He offers H.C. a ticket. H.C. believes that the ticket is free of charge which makes the man angry. A maid passes by, gives H.C. a coin believing he is a beggar. H.C. can now buy his ticket, but he doesn´t. Instead he fools the seller of tickets into ringing the door-bell. When the door is opened by a maid, he manages to sneak into the house while the maid is quarrelling with the seller.

SCENE 3

Madame Schall´s residence. H.C. asks Mme Schall to help him to be accepted at the Royal Theatre but Madame Schall thinks H.C. is crazy and throws him out. On his way out he bumps into Count Gravenstein, director of the Royal Theatre. He is not impressed by H.C. either because of his clumsy manners. He is finally thrown out of the house.

SCENE 4

Ulkegade, street with prostitutes in Copenhagen. H.C. is very sad that he didn´t succeed in getting a job at the Royal Theatre. He sings Is This The End? He meets Lise. She comforts H.C. and he tells her about his childhood and that he is now without money. Lise takes H.C.´s last coin and plays a trick on a woman who is on her way to the market with a basket full of eggs. Thus she manages to buy all her eggs with H.C.´s coin. They give the eggs to Mme Thorgesen, Lise´s landlady in exchange for some days´ board and lodging for H.C.

SCENE 5

Signore Siboni´s salon. Signore Siboni is giving a dinner. All guests are well-known citizens, among then Mme Schall. Suddenly a maid rushes in announcing that someone wants to see "Il Signore". She sings Signore. When the song is over, H.C. enters singing One Show Of A Lifetime. H.C.´s singing is a success and the company takes fancy to his odd manners. A collection in aid of H.C. begins. He is offered help with singing, dancing and acting lessons and he will be receiving a monthly allowance of ten Riksdalers. H.C. and the others sing One Show Of A Lifetime.

SCENE 6

At Mme Thorgesen´s place. H.C. and Lise are having a chat. H.C. boasts about his success at Siboni´s dinner and about the glamorous future that awaits him. Lise, however, doesn´t expect anything from the future so H.C. gives her his grandmother´s amulet which brings luck to its bearer.

SCENE 7

The stage of the Royal Theatre just before the beginning of an operetta. H.C. is having an acting lesson with Mr Lindgreen, his teacher. Lindgreen advises H.C. against an acting career and earlier Siboni has dissuaded H.C. from a singing career. The operetta starts. The orchestra plays Ingunazia .

In the beginning of the operetta, a number of walk-ons are on the stage playing people at a market place. H.C. joins them, but one dancer drags H.C. to the front of the stage and gives him a special presentation. H.C. is ashamed and he runs away.

SCENE 1

Some years later in Faaborg. H.C. is visiting a fellow-student, Christian Voigt, in his home. There he meets Christian´s sister Riborg. He falls in love with her. H.C. and Riborg chat in the garden. H.C. tries to declare his love, but he is too shy. Later H.C. has to leave the family to take a ship back. Christian accompanies him to the ship. H.C. asks Christian for advice and he learns that Riborg is "already almost engaged" to another man. H.C. writes a poem and asks Christian to give it to Riborg when he returns back home. In exchange for his poem he has made Riborg promise to answer his letters. On the ship H.C. sings Live And Let Live Again.

SCENE 2

New Year´s Eve. The Naval cadets´ ball in Admiral Wulff´s residence. The orchestra plays At The Beautiful Blue Sound (A waltz). Admiral Wulff is one of H.C.´s benefactors and that is the reason why H.C. is present. The whole fashonable society will be there, including the King. H.C. will also meet Oehlenschläger at the ball. The Orchestra plays The Dawn (a fanfare) and then First March to announce the King´s arrival. When the King arrives he catches sight of H.C. and he starts to sing Who Is That Funny Man? After the song H.C. rushes straight up to him in order to get a scholarship from the King. The King tries to close the conversation, but H.C. is very persistent. Finally the King manages to get away and H.C. bumps into Count Gravenstein. He drops something and H.C. picks it up. Then H.C. discovers that the object is the amulet he once received from his grandmother and which he later gave to Lise to bring her luck. Suddenly H.C. realizes the truth which is that "Mr Müller" and Count Gravenstein is the same person. He also learns that Lise has broken the relationship with Gravenstein. Therefore he has stopped paying for her room at Mme Thorgesen´s and Lise has been thrown out in the street. H.C. leaves the ball and hurries away to help Lise.

SCENE 3

New Year´s Eve. Ulkegade. Lise walks around in the cold night. To keep herself warm she strikes matches but the night is too cold. Lise sings The Little Match Girl and when the song is over Lise is dead.

H.C. comes running, but too late. He hangs the amulet around her neck and starts to sing What Does A Bird Get For All Its Singing?

SCENE 4

The Town Hall Square in Copenhagen at the statue of H.C. Andersen (like in act I, Scene 2)

The music of What Do You Know About That Thing Called Love starts. Miss Dancer asks H.C. what was written in Riborg´s last letter and she asks him to read it for her. H.C. agrees and starts singing the last section of the song Live And Let Live Again which corresponds to the lines of the letter. H.C. becomes a statue again.