TEHRAN -- “Flying of the Penguin”, a stage adaptation of German children’s author Karl Ruhmann’s “Filbert Flies”, is currently being performed by an Iranian theater troupe in Tehran.

Saqi Asgari directs the play at the Institute for Intellectual Development of Children and Young Adults (IIDCYA), which is the sponsor of the all-child troupe.
The first performance on May 23 was dedicated to members from Iran’s Theater Forum and a number of puppet show artists.
“Filbert Flies” (2003), which has been translated into Persian by Seyyed Mehdi Shojaei, is known in Iran as “Flying of the Penguin”.
It is about Filbert, the little penguin that feels sad and ashamed when the big sea gull tells him that penguins can’t fly.
Just then a little seal comes to encourage Filbert saying that Filbert is a world champion skater and a most elegant waddler and dancer. With the little seal’s friendly encouragement, Filbert realizes that he can do anything he wants if he just sets his mind to it.
“The play tries to get close to the children’s dreams rather than to narrate a story to them,” said Asgari, who stages the play with children which are all under 7.