Hänneschen-Theater

In addition to the ever-changing pieces that are staged for adults and children, the puppet shows are also an important part of the Cologne Carnival.

Schäl can refer to the squinted eyes of the two figures or also a term meaning two-faced or iniquitous in the Kölsch dialect.

Christoph Winters, the founder of the first Cologne Hänneschen puppet theater, introduced Tünnes to the ensemble in 1803.

Schäl was introduced in 1847 in a competing theater run by Franz Millewitsch, an ancestor of actor Willy Millowitsch.

Millewitsch placed the sly figure of Schäl with the good-natured Tünnes, clearly a nudge against his clever competitor Winters.