HCA NEWS Birthday Party at the Hans Christian Andersen Museum

Traditions will be kept, when the Hans Christian Andersen Museum in Odense opens its doors today to celebrate the city's great writer on his 198th birthday.

By ms - H.C. Andersen 2005 - 02 April 2003

There will be no skimping on tradition at the Hans Christian Andersen Museum in Odense for the celebration of the fairytale writer's 198th birthday today, April 2.  As in previous years, entrance to the museum will be free and, at the end of the day, 5:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m., the traditional birthday reception will be held in Mindehallen.

At this event, a grant from the writer's own trust will be distributed to a "diligent schoolboy from Odense Charity School." However, since the charity school no longer exists, a boy - and always a boy - is selected at large from the Odense school system.

The trust's yield today is unfortunately only DKK 100 (about $15), but the association "Friends of the Hans Christian Andersen Museum" has kindly rounded the figure up to DKK 6,000.

In addition, the highly esteemed Norwegian artist Håkon Bleken will participate in the event.  He has created a graphic print, inspired by the fairy tale "The Tinderbox," for the Andersen Annual Art series, which has unveiled a new work every year on Hans Christian Andersen's birthday. The first specimen will be presented to the Chairperson of the Board of Governors of Danmarks Nationalbank Bodil Nyboe Andersen.

The birthday event traditionally - and naturally - includes examples of Hans Christian Andersen's own art. However, this year, it will not be a fairy tale but other samples of the writer's abundant creativity:

First, actor William Rosenberg will read Hans Christian Andersen's own, very funny - but, unfortunately, rather obscure - verse tale, "Manden fra Paradiis" ["The Man From Paradise"]. Then, singers Kiki Brandt and Jesper Buhl, accompanied by Hanne Bramsen Buhl, will sing well-known and less well-known excerpts from Hans Christian Andersen's operas.



For yderligere oplysninger kontakt venligst H.C. Andersens Hus
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