We all know the basic story of Hansel and Gretel, a tale attributed to the Brothers Grimm from 1810, but made up of pieces from fairy tales through the centuries. Some even say Hansel dropping breadcrumbs hails all the way back to the story of Ariadne giving Theseus a thread to find his way out of the Menos’ labyrinth. These tropes of finding one’s way in the “dark,” and children triumphing over the threat of an ogre or witch are found in many a folktale across cultures, and the trope of the “wicked stepmother” was actually created by the Brothers Grimm for this tale, though that was in later editions of the story. Besides being a children’s cautionary tale, the story in its earliest incarnation took on the very real problem of child abandonment (and sometimes sale) when families didn’t have enough to go around. The idea of a family lacking in food and resources is what Adelheid Wette (the librettist of the opera and Engelbert Humperdinck’s sister) centered her version around in the 1890’s, and I think it’s brought even more to the fore with Kathleen Kelly’s brilliant English translation.

The notion of starvation and the burden of the working poor, a relevant topic for centuries, is what has always drawn me to this opera.  Hansel and Gretel’s mom and dad (not stepmother, as in so many tellings) are both trying to bring in money, and despite what they do, they cannot make ends meet. This is not an anomaly in our society, and so we see so many of our citizens mirrored in these characters. Everyone’s tired, everyone’s hungry, and the slightest agitation gets blown up into yelling and aggravation. I fully believe that this family loves one another, but as their characters are drawn, we can absolutely see the strain that poverty has put on each one of them. In such an environment, of course the kids are pulled into danger when the prospect of food is put in front of them.  The witch has found the perfect way to find her prey in a region where everyone is struggling. We can certainly assign aspects of the witch to our modern capitalist society as well.

The final “moral” of the story, sung by the cast when the parents finally find their children and the witch is vanquished, “When we feel the worst despair, angels send us love and care,” could certainly point us to divine intervention and the power of prayer, but I also choose to see it as a testament to the kindness around us. Mr. Rogers’ mother always told him, “Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.” With those words, I see the angels as all of us: family, friends, teachers, activists. We all must be kinder to each other and keep our eyes open for those in need and those in trouble. When we feel the worst despair, I still hold out great hope that the kindness in others can help us vanquish the witches and ogres in our lives.