Fairy tale celebration for the greatest Dane

Denmark leads the world in marking the bicentenary of its favourite literary son,writes Judith Crosbie

The fairy tales have been reissued, new biographies published and hundreds of events organised to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the birth of great Dane, Hans Christian Andersen.

Over 40 countries, from Iceland to Egypt, have taken part in the celebrations. But as one would expect, it is Andersen's native Denmark which has gone into overdrive to commemorate one of its most famous sons.

The more spectacular events so far have included the lavish musical version of The Little Mermaid on a floating stage off Copenhagen harbour, which premiered last Thursday.

The organisation in charge of the celebrations secured €31.5 million from the Danish government to put on a show that would last the eight-month birthday party.

Ten new orchestral pieces inspired by fairy tales have been written by Danish composers. Tours, talks, exhibitions, operas and plays are being staged all over Denmark. Even Lego has produced a special set whereby the Ugly Duckling can be built up using its bricks.

In Ireland, the National Library held an exhibition which was accompanied by story readings and creative workshops. A story competition was also organised by the Danish embassy and the Irish Writers' Centre, to which 800 primary schools responded.

Globally, there were ice sculptures of the Snow Queen in Estonia, puppet theatre in China based on the Tinderbox, and a plaque unveiled to the great man in Edinburgh.

A 14-year-old Cuban girl, Lysbeth Daumont Robles, won an international letter-writing competition, with a letter to the tin soldier. She described how the courage shown by the one-legged toy helps her to cope with growing up.

But there have been hiccups. An exhibition in New York's Public Library had to be taken down because of poorly- translated text with exhibits. A walking tour in Copenhagen tracing points of interest from the author's life took a wrong turn when graffiti artists drew footprints indicating the way to less lyrical places such as the Museum of Erotica.

The biggest problem for organisers hit them in the pocket. On Andersen's birthday on April 2nd a party was organised which reportedly ran €1.7 million over budget, and was panned by many in Denmark. Organisers hired Tina Turner as the show headliner. But the ageing rocker played only two songs, for which she was paid a reported $1 million. Worse for ordinary Danes was the guest list at the party - European royals, Hollywood celebrities and the glitterati from the world of literature and politics, with the ordinary Dane left out on the streets just like the Little Match Girl.

Would Andersen himself have joined them in their criticism? Probably not. He had craved fame and liked to surround himself with the rich and important. His humble beginnings in Odense - born into poverty with a shoemaker for a father and an alcoholic mother - made him acutely aware of the struggle for survival.

He left his hometown at the age of 14 and came to Copenhagen to make his way in the arts. But after unsuccessful attempts at acting, singing and dancing he was encouraged to go to school, setting the seeds for his writing career.

Just like his Little Mermaid, he never really felt accepted. He seemed desperate to turn his back on his beginnings - his mother died a drunk in a poorhouse while his half-sister died of consumption in the red- light district in Copenhagen. Nonetheless, the old way of life in Odense, steeped in superstition and mythology, stayed with him and became the basis for his inspirations.

For more information on events around the world see www.hca2005.com