About the work
ugly duckling is a devised theatre work by Bastian Kraft and the ensemble, based on motifs and stories by Hans Christian Andersen. It premiered at Deutsches Theater Berlin on 25 April 2019. The production juxtaposes Andersen's recurring transformations with the biographies and stage personas of Berlin drag performers. It is therefore not simply an adaptation of The Ugly Duckling but an independent theatrical work that uses Andersen as source material.
Plot
Beginning with transformations in Andersen's fairy tales—particularly The Ugly Duckling and The Little Mermaid—the production explores transformation as a play with gender, sexuality and self-invention. Berlin drag performers contribute their own stage identities and biographical experiences. Make-up, wigs, costumes and performance are treated not merely as disguise but as practices capable of producing confidence, visibility and new forms of agency.
Cultural significance
The production connects canonical European fairy tales with contemporary Berlin drag culture. Bastian Kraft received the Ehrenstöckel award from Travestie für Deutschland for the production in 2019. Reviews highlighted both its entertainment value and its exploration of drag as empowerment, asking whether the deliberately constructed persona can sometimes allow a person to confront the world more confidently than the supposedly unperformed self.