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For almost 40 years, a visit to the GRIPS Theater in Berlin has been one of the highlights of the year for generations of schoolchildren.
Grips means brains in Berlinese.
But Grips is much more than that.
It is a theater that is unique in the whole of Germany.
West Berlin, the free city of the free world, frontline city against communism: 1969 is the official start of Grips.
Originating from the tradition of post-war cabaret, Volker Ludwig and his friends create anti-authoritarian children's theater.
"Stokkerlok and Millipilli" is the name of the first play with a clear message: it is forbidden to ban.
A scandal, the GRIPS Theater makes itself unpopular with politicians and the press - but in the end it stands its ground.
The play "Linie 1", which has been performed without interruption since 1986, marks the beginning of a unique success story and a journey around the world: Calcutta, Moscow, Omsk, Vilnius, Seoul, London.
Today, "Linie 1" is performed in 25 languages all over the world and is the most successful German musical of all time after the Dreigroschenoper.
In addition to the founder and director Volker Ludwig and the actors Axel Prahl, Dieter Landuris and Julia Blankenburg, who were or are part of the large Grips family, Klaus Wowereit and Eberhard Diepgen have their say.
They all talk about an extraordinary piece of German theater history and a theater that for many is an inseparable part of childhood, youth and growing up.
Broadcast: Sunday, December 28, 2008, 12:30 p.m., 3Sat.
