Elisabeth (musical)

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Pia Douwes as Elisabeth and Viktor Gernot as Franz Josef in the original 1992 Vienna production

Kata Janza as Elisabeth and Szilveszter P. Szabo as Death in Budapest 2002

Stanley Burleson as Death and Pia Douwes as Elisabeth in Scheveningen 1999

Elisabeth is a German-language musical commissioned by the Vereinigte Bühnen Wien (VBW), with book/lyrics by Michael Kunze and music by Sylvester Levay. It portrays the life and death of the Empress consort of Austria, Elisabeth of Bavaria, wife of Emperor Franz Josef I. It has been translated into seven languages and seen by over eight million spectators worldwide, making it the most successful German-language musical of all time.

1 Synopsis
2 Production History
3 Scenes and Song List
4 External Links and Additional Photos

[edit] Synopsis

"Ich halte den Fächer oder den Schirm vor mein Gesicht, damit der Tod ungestört arbeiten kann…"
("I hold the fan or the umbrella in front of my face, so that death can work without being disturbed...")
--Empress Elisabeth of Austria--
--Quote from the souvenir brochure-- © Vereinigte Bühnen Wien 2003--

The following is the official synopsis taken directly from the Vienna Revival website (see External Links for valid reference):

"Elisabeth's life started like a romantic fairytale and ended with a tragic murder. When she was 16 years of age, she ascended the Austrian throne as a young girl of radiant beauty. Emperor Franz Joseph chose her as his wife instead of her sister, Helene, who had been selected. He was unable to resist her joie de vivre, her carefree manner and youthfulness. But the first dark shadows started to gather soon after the festive wedding. There were strict rules at the Viennese Court. Deprivation and power struggles made life a misery for young Elisabeth. Her strict mother-in-law, Archduchess Sophie, watched her mercilessly and insisted that she complied with the rigid protcol.

Imprisoned by court conventions and a role model which did not suit her, Elisabeth fought with all her power for her freedom and personal happiness. Her husband was unable to help her. He was subjected to his duties and at the mercy of his domineering mother. She hardly remained at the Viennese Court, her inner conflict drove her from place to place. She travelled restlessly through Europe, not available for anyone, neither for her son nor her husband. She got lost in her own world, always accompanied by a mysterious force - Death. After the suicide of her son, Rudolf (see Crown Prince Rudolf), Elisabeth recognised her unsuccessful life and then longer for Death herself. She withdrew to Corfu, wrote poetry and kept her diary whilst nationalism and racism were gaining the upper hand more and more in Vienna. Emperor Franz Joseph was no longer able to control these forces and was also helpless with respect to his rival, all powerful Death.

The assassination by the Italian anarchist, Luigi Lucheni, on the banks of Lake Geneva brought the "lovers" together. Elisabeth's struggles and longings ended in a passionate embrace with Death. One epoch disappeared, a new era began."

[edit] Production History

The world premiere of Elisabeth, directed by Harry Kupfer, took place on September 3, 1992 at the Theater an der Wien in Vienna, Austria, where it ran until January 1997. After a brief hiatus, it reopened on September 4, 1997. The final closing date was on April 25, 1998. A 10th Anniversary Concert took place at the Wiener Konzerthaus in Vienna on October 21, 2002. The Vienna production was revived on October 3, 2003 and ran until December 4, 2005. (See NOTE below.) The event was commemorated by the Austrian post office with a special stamp.

Other productions have been mounted in the following countries. Current or upcoming productions are in bold:

Japan: The Takarazuka Grand Theatre, The Takarazuka Revue- Osaka, Japan (February 16, 1996- current. See NOTE below.)
Japan: The Tokyo Takarazuka Theatre, The Takarazuka Revue- Tokyo, Japan (June 3, 1996- current. See NOTE below.)
Japan: The Imperial Garden Theater, The Toho Company- Tokyo, Japan (June 6, 2000- ?; 2001; 2004; 2005)
Hungary: The Open-Air Theatre of Szeged- Szeged, Hungary (August 17, 1996- September/October 1996)
Hungary: The Operetta Theatre (Fõvárosi Operett Színház)- Budapest, Hungary (October 6, 1996- January 2005. See NOTE below.)
Hungary: The Hungarian National Theatre- Miskolc, Hungary (Autumn 1999- April 2001)
Sweden: Musiktheatern i Värmland- Karlstad, Sweden (September 30, 1999- January 9, 2000)
The Netherlands: Amateur Dutch Production (1998)
The Netherlands: The Fortis Circus Theatre- Stage Entertainment- Scheveningen, The Hague, North Holland (November 21, 1999- June 22, 2001)
Germany: The Colosseum Theater, Stage Entertainment- Essen, Germany (March 22, 2001- June 28, 2003)
Germany: The Apollo Theater, Stage Holding/Stage Entertainment- Stuttgart, Germany (March 6, 2005- September 17, 2006)
Italy: Miramare Castle, Open-air Concert Version- Trieste, Italy (July 21- 27, 2004; July 31- August 6, 2005. See NOTE below.)
Finland: Turun Kaupunginteatteri, The Municipal Theatre of Turku- Turku, Finland (September 23, 2005- December 30, 2006)
Switzerland: Thunersee Open-Air Theatre- Thun, Switzerland (July 19 - August 30, 2006)

- NOTE on Vienna Revival Production: The Vienna Revival is currently touring Japan. It opened in Osaka at the Umeda Arts Theatre on March 28, 2007 and will show 40 performances through April 30, 2007. From there the production will travel to Tokyo for its opening (in concert version) at the Koma Stadium Theatre on May 7, 2007. The Japan Tour of the Vienna Revival run is scheduled to end on May 20, 2007.

- NOTE on Open-air Concert Version at Miramare: For two consecutive summers, these special, week-long invitational concerts were held by the historic Miramare Castle to promote the Vienna Revival. These performances were held during the show's annual summer pause, and several cast members from the Vienna Revival participated. The concerts were performed in German and Italian.

- NOTE on Hungarian Productions: Elisabeth premiered in the Hungarian language at The Open-Air Theatre of Szeged in August of 1996. The Budapest production that premiered at The Operetta Theatre in October of 1996, took over the repertoire for the previous Open-Air production. Bewteen the years of 1996 and 2005, with allowance for casting changes and the use of the theatre's space for other various events, subsequent productions were held (including the Miskolc run). The Hungarian production has a running history of eight years, the longest running, un-interrupted Elisabeth production in the world.
  - Right now there seems to be a revised production scheduled for opening for the 2007/2008 season at The Operetta Theatre in Budapest. Further official word has yet to be confirmed.

- NOTE on Japanese Takarazuka Productions: Since 1996, the musical has been performed by each of the five troupes of the all-female Japanese Takarazuka Revue. Elisabeth will be reprised this year by the Yukigumi/Snow Troupe, the sixth Elisabeth production to be performed by the Takarazuka Revue. (See dates below.) Production history for each troupe is as follows:
  - Yukigumi/Snow Troupe- The Takarazuka Grand Theatre (February 16- March 25, 1996); The Tokyo Takarazuka Theatre (June 3- 30, 1996)
    - Reprise: The Takarazuka Grand Theatre (May 4- June 18, 2007); The Tokyo Takarazuka Theatre (July 6- August 12, 2007)
  - Hoshigumi/Star Troupe- The Takarazuka Grand Theater (November 8 - December 16, 1996); The Tokyo Takarazuka Theater (March 4- 31, 1997)
  - Soragumi/Cosmos Troupe- The Takarazuka Grand Theater (October 30- December 20, 1998); The 1000 Days Theater (February 19- March 29, 1999)
  - Hanagumi/Flower Troupe- The Takarazuka Grand Theater October 4- November 18, 2002); The Tokyo Takarazuka Theater (January 2- February 9, 2003)
  - Tsukigumi/Moon Troupe- The Takarazuka Grand Theater February 4- March 21, 2005); The Tokyo Takarazuka Theatre (April 28- May 22, 2005)

Thérèse Karlsson as Elisabeth and Tomi Metsäketo as Franz Josef in Turku 2005/2006

Jesper Tydén as Rudolf and Pia Douwes as Elisabeth in Essen 2001

Maike Boerdam as Elisabeth and Olegg Vynnyk as Death in Stuttgart 2005

Christoph Goetten as Death and Willemijn Verkaik as Elisabeth in Thun 2006

[edit] Scenes and Song List

Elisabeth is unusual among musicals in that additional songs have been added for some productions that are not featured in other, later productions. Also the order of songs is often switched, which is mostly visible between the German and the Viennese versions. This song list and order, with titles in English, is based upon the original Vienna production except where noted.

Act One:

Prologue (Prolog) Judge, Lucheni, Death, the Dead
Like You (Wie du) Elisabeth, Max
Lovely to Have You All Here (Schön, euch alle zu seh'n) Ludovika, Hélène, Family
Every Path Is a Maze (Kein Kommen ohne Gehen) Death (Hungarian & Japanese productions only)
Black Prince (Schwarzer Prinz) Elisabeth (originally a direct reprise of Like You, rewritten for the Dutch premiere and subsequent productions)
Each Gets What He Deserves (Jedem gibt er das Seine) Sophie, Franz-Joseph, the Court
Things Never Happen Exactly as You Plan (So wie man plant und denkt...) Lucheni, Sophie, Hélène, Elisabeth, Franz-Joseph
It's Not Hard (Nichts ist schwer) Franz-Joseph, Elisabeth
All the Questions Have Been Asked (Alle Fragen sind gestellt) Wedding Chorus
She's Not Right (Sie passt nicht) Sophie, Max, Wedding Guests
The Last Dance (Der letzte Tanz) Death
An Empress Must Sparkle (Eine Kaiserin muss glänzen) Sophie, Countess Esterházy, Ladies-in-Waiting
I Belong to Me (Ich gehör nur mir) Elisabeth
The First Four Years (Die ersten vier Jahre) Lucheni, Elisabeth, Sophie, Ladies-in-Waiting, Franz-Joseph, The Court, Hungarians
Shades of Night (Die Schatten werden länger) (Preview) Death
Waiting for the World to End (Die fröhliche Apokalypse) Lucheni, coffeehouse patrons
Child or Not (Kind oder nicht) Sophie, Countess Esterházy, Young Rudolf (appears from the German premiere and subsequent productions)
Elisabeth, Open Up My Angel (Elisabeth, mach auf mein Engel) Franz-Joseph, Elisabeth, Death
Milk (Milch) Lucheni, the Poor
Beauty Care (Schönheitspflege) Countess Esterházy, Ladies-in-Waiting
I Just Want to Tell You (Ich will dir nur sagen)(I Belong to Me Reprise) Franz-Joseph, Elisabeth, Death

Act Two:

Kitsch (Kitsch) Lucheni
Éljen (Éljen) Hungarian Crowds, Lucheni (not present in Stage Entertainment productions)
When I Want to Dance (Wenn ich tanzen will) Death, Elisabeth (written for the German premiere and appears in subsequent productions)
Mother, Where Are You? (Mama, wo bist du?) Young Rudolf
She Is Insane (Sie ist verrückt) Elisabeth, Miss Windisch
Nothing at All (Nichts, nichts, gar nichts) Elisabeth (originally a dance-sequence with Elisabeth as Titania from A Midsummer Night's Dream)
It's Us or Her (Wir oder sie) Sophie, The Court
Don't Be Embarrassed (Nur kein Genieren) Madame Wolf, Lucheni, Whores
The Last Chance(Or 'The Maladie') (Die letzte Chance) Death, Elisabeth
Between Dream and Reality (Zwischen Traum und Wirklichkeit) Elisabeth (Toho Japanese productions only)
Bellaria (Bellaria) Sophie (Primarily appeared in Hungarian and Japanese productions starting in 1996; Has been present in all productions since that date.)
The Restless Years (Die rastlosen Jahre) Franz-Joseph, The Court, Ladies-in-Waiting
The Shades of Night Are Growing (Die Schatten werden länger) Death, Rudolf
Like You (Wie du) (reprise) Elisabeth, Max's Ghost
Hate (Hass) Anti-Semites (cut for the Takarazuka productions due to its content)
If I Were Your Mirror (Wenn ich dein Spiegel wär) Rudolf, Elisabeth
The Mayerling Waltz (Mayerling-Walzer) Rudolf, Death, Mary Vetsera
Rudolf, Where Are You? (Rudolf, wo bist du?) Elisabeth (a duet with Sophie's Ghost in the Dutch production)
My New Assortment (Mein neues Sortiment) (Kitsch reprise) Lucheni
Two Boats in the Night (Boote in der Nacht) Elisabeth, Franz-Joseph
On the Deck of the Sinking World (Am Deck der sinkenden Welt) Lucheni, Death, Franz-Joseph, the Habsburgs
The Veil Descends (Der Schleier fällt) Elisabeth, Death