The Bremen Town Musicians

An old Donkey, Hound, Cat and Rooster, no longer wanted at home, set off together to be town musicians in Bremen. In a dark forest they find a robbers’ house, scare the robbers away with their music, and make it their happy home.

Scene 1: Off to Bremen

The Bremen Town Musicians. Once there was a Donkey who had carried sacks to the mill for many years. Now he was old and tired, and his master did not want him anymore. So the Donkey ran away down the road to Bremen. He thought: “There I can surely be a town musician!”

Scene 2: Three New Friends

Soon he met a Hound lying by the road, panting. The Hound said: “I am too old to hunt, so my master does not want me.” The Donkey said: “Come with me to Bremen! I will play the lute, and you shall beat the drum.” Next they met a Cat with a face like three rainy days. The Donkey said: “Come with us. You know all about night music!”

Scene 3: The Rooster on the Gate

At a farmyard, a Rooster sat on the gate, crowing with all his might. He cried: “Guests are coming on Sunday, and the cook wants me for the soup!” The Donkey said: “Come away with us, Red-comb! You have a fine voice.” So all four went on together.

Scene 4: A Light in the Forest

Bremen was too far to reach in one day, so at evening they stopped in a forest. The Donkey and the Hound lay under a tree. The Cat climbed into the branches, and the Rooster flew to the top. From up there, the Rooster saw a little light far away. He called: “There must be a house nearby, for I can see a light!”

Scene 5: The Robbers’ House

They walked toward the light until they came to a robbers’ house, all lit up. The Donkey, the biggest, looked in at the window. The Rooster asked: “What do you see, my gray horse?” The Donkey answered: “A table full of good food, and robbers having a fine time!”

Scene 6: The Concert

So they made a plan. The Donkey put his front feet on the windowsill. The Hound jumped on his back, the Cat climbed on the Hound, and the Rooster flew onto the Cat’s head. Then they made their music. The Donkey brayed, the Hound barked, the Cat meowed, and the Rooster crowed! They burst in through the window. The robbers thought a ghost had come, and ran off into the forest! The four friends ate their fill, put out the light, and went to sleep.

Scene 7: Home at Last

Late that night, one robber crept back into the dark house. He saw the Cat’s glowing eyes and thought they were hot coals. The Cat sprang at him, hissing! The Hound nipped his leg, the Donkey gave him a kick, and the Rooster crowed: “Cock-a-doodle-doo!” The robber ran back to his captain and cried: “There is a witch in that house, and a monster, and a judge on the roof!” The robbers never came back. But the four musicians liked the house so well that they stayed there for good. Old friends, working together, can do what none of them could do alone.

Moral: Old friends, working together, can do what none of them could do alone.

Questions about The Bremen Town Musicians

Where was the Donkey going to become a town musician?

Bremen.

What did the Donkey say the Hound would play?

The drum.

What did the Rooster see from the top of the tree?

A little light far away.

Who climbed onto the Hound’s back?

The Cat.

What did the robber think the Cat’s glowing eyes were?

Hot coals.