Elisabeth (musical)
Encyclopedia
Elisabeth is a Viennese, 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 Joseph I
. It has been translated into seven languages and seen by over nine million spectators worldwide, making it the most successful German-language musical of all time.
At a young age, Sisi, grown up in a seemingly sorrowless environment, experiences her first encounter with Death, a dashing handsome young man, which launches a love-hate affair that will span her entire life.
Lucheni claims that once Franz Joseph, the Emperor of Austria, picks Elisabeth as his bride - for once opposing his domineering mother Sophie - he began a chain of events that eventually toppled the Habsburg empire. Elisabeth herself very soon comes to regret her seemingly "fairy-tale marriage" as the biggest mistake of her life. She feels abandoned by her careless husband, psychologically abused by her possessive mother-in-law and is chronically depressed due to her loneliness. There is only one thing that keeps her emotionally stimulated, and that is the dark and sensual shadow of Death, but Elisabeth is reluctant to consummate their relationship. When Death takes her infant daughter, the tragedy shakes the young Empress extremely, but she refuses to give in to Death's sway.
After her other three children, including her only son Rudolf, are taken away by Sophie, Elisabeth calluses over and becomes a cold, selfish woman. She flees the Austrian court and spends decades restlessly travelling all over the world, trying in vain to escape from her fear of emptiness. Eventually, Elisabeth makes peace with her husband and finds new meaning in her life when she helps unify Austria and Hungary, but her new found purpose makes her neglect her psychologically delicate son even further, sending young Rudolf into deep depression and causing him to bond with Death.
Eventually, Rudolf's own loneliness and his father's overbearing, conservative views cause him to snap and he embraces Death, committing suicide at Mayerling with his mistress, Mary Vetsera. This event completely breaks down Elisabeth and she begs Death to take her. However, her scorned lover now refuses to take her in.
Another decade goes by. Elisabeth still wanders from place to place, dressed in permanent mourning. Franz Joseph visits her from time to time, begging her to return home to Vienna, firmly believing that love is the answer to all sorrows, but Elisabeth refuses, citing that sometimes love is simply not enough to cure old wounds.
Finally, Death takes pity on the unhappy Empress. In a horrifying vision of the fall of the House of Habsburg, Franz Joseph finally meets his mysterious rival. He witnesses Death throw Lucheni a dagger, but being crushed under the weight of his imperial crest, he is powerless to save his wife.
On September 10, 1898, while on her way to board a ship in Geneva, Empress Elisabeth of Austria is attacked by a mad anarchist named Luigi Lucheni and is stabbed in the heart by a crudely improvised needle file. She dies shortly after and embraces her one true love, Death.
, 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. In October 2002, a 10th Anniversary miniseries of concerts took place at the Wiener Konzerthaus in Vienna. The Vienna production was revived on October 3, 2003 and ran until December 4, 2005.
Other productions have been mounted in the following countries. Current or upcoming productions are in bold:
Act One:
Act Two:
VIENNA 1992 Elisabeth — original cast recording (Originalaufnahmen aus dem Musical Elisabeth)
Elisabeth: Pia Douwes, Der Tod: Uwe Kröger, Luigi Lucheni: Ethan Freeman
Polydor GMBH - 513 792-2
VIENNA 1996 Elisabeth — complete live recording (Live aus dem Theater an der Wien Gesamtaufnahme des Musicals Elisabeth)
Elisabeth: Maya Hakvoort
, Der Tod: Addo Kruizinga, Luigi Lucheni: Bruno Grassini
Polydor GMBH - 531 481-2
SCHEVENINGEN 1999 Elisabeth — original Dutch cast album
Elisabeth: Pia Douwes, De Dood: Stanley Burleson, Luigi Luicheni: Wim van den Driessche
Polydor - 543 335-2
ESSEN 2001 Elisabeth — original German cast album (Highlights der deutschen Urauffürung im Colosseum Theater Essen)
Elisabeth: Pia Douwes, Der Tod: Uwe Kröger, Luigi Lucheni: Carsten Lepper
Polydor GMBH - 549 800-2
VIENNA 2004 Elisabeth — Revival cast recording (Aktuelles Cast Album, Wien)
Elisabeth: Maya Hakvoort, Der Tod: Máté Kamarás, Luigi Luicheni: Serkan Kaya
HitSquad Records 6680530
VIENNA 2005 Elisabeth — complete live recording (Gesamtaufnahme live aus dem Theater an der Wien)
Elisabeth: Maya Hakvoort, Der Tod: Máté Kamarás, Luigi Luicheni: Serkan Kaya, Kaiser Franz Joseph: André Bauer, Erzherzogin Sophie: Else Ludwig, Erzherzog Rudolf: Fritz Schmid
HitSquad Records 668262
Musical theatre
Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and dance. The emotional content of the piece – humor, pathos, love, anger – as well as the story itself, is communicated through the words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an...
commissioned by the Vereinigte Bühnen Wien
Vereinigte Bühnen Wien
Vereinigte Bühnen Wien , or United Stages Vienna, is a musical production company based in Vienna, Austria which produced several own musicals that were very successful.- Original musical productions :...
(VBW), with book/lyrics by Michael Kunze and music by Sylvester Levay
Sylvester Levay
Sylvester Levay is a Hungarian composer. He was born 16 May 1945 in Subotica , in the North Bačka District of Vojvodina, Yugoslavia ; his name is pronounced in English similarly to "lave-ah-ee."...
. It portrays the life and death of the Empress consort of Austria, Elisabeth of Bavaria
Elisabeth of Bavaria
Elisabeth of Austria was the spouse of Franz Joseph I, and therefore both Empress of Austria and Queen of Hungary. She also held the titles of Queen of Bohemia and Croatia, among others...
, wife of Emperor Franz Joseph I
Franz Joseph I of Austria
Franz Joseph I or Francis Joseph I was Emperor of Austria, King of Bohemia, King of Croatia, Apostolic King of Hungary, King of Galicia and Lodomeria and Grand Duke of Cracow from 1848 until his death in 1916.In the December of 1848, Emperor Ferdinand I of Austria abdicated the throne as part of...
. It has been translated into seven languages and seen by over nine million spectators worldwide, making it the most successful German-language musical of all time.
Summary
The Musical tells the story of Elisabeth ("Sissi") the Empress of Austria from 1854 to her murder in 1898 at the hands of the mad Italian anarchist Luigi Lucheni who is in turn working for his master - Death who pursues a love/hate relationship with the Empress that lasts throughout her life.Synopsis
'The show opens in the "nightly world of the dead and the dreamers", where Luigi Lucheni is being interrogated by an imaginary Judge as to why he has murdered the Empress Elisabeth, a continuous punishment for his deed that has lasted for over one hundred years. Lucheni claims that he did no more than what Elisabeth herself wanted, since all her life Elisabeth has been in love with Death himself - and vice versa. As his witnesses, Lucheni brings back the dead aristocracy of the bygone era and takes us to the past, where he serves as a sarcastic narrator of the events that lead to the transformation of the sweet and innocent Sisi to the revered and infamous Elisabeth, Empress of Austria and Hungary, and her decline through later years until her assassination.At a young age, Sisi, grown up in a seemingly sorrowless environment, experiences her first encounter with Death, a dashing handsome young man, which launches a love-hate affair that will span her entire life.
Lucheni claims that once Franz Joseph, the Emperor of Austria, picks Elisabeth as his bride - for once opposing his domineering mother Sophie - he began a chain of events that eventually toppled the Habsburg empire. Elisabeth herself very soon comes to regret her seemingly "fairy-tale marriage" as the biggest mistake of her life. She feels abandoned by her careless husband, psychologically abused by her possessive mother-in-law and is chronically depressed due to her loneliness. There is only one thing that keeps her emotionally stimulated, and that is the dark and sensual shadow of Death, but Elisabeth is reluctant to consummate their relationship. When Death takes her infant daughter, the tragedy shakes the young Empress extremely, but she refuses to give in to Death's sway.
After her other three children, including her only son Rudolf, are taken away by Sophie, Elisabeth calluses over and becomes a cold, selfish woman. She flees the Austrian court and spends decades restlessly travelling all over the world, trying in vain to escape from her fear of emptiness. Eventually, Elisabeth makes peace with her husband and finds new meaning in her life when she helps unify Austria and Hungary, but her new found purpose makes her neglect her psychologically delicate son even further, sending young Rudolf into deep depression and causing him to bond with Death.
Eventually, Rudolf's own loneliness and his father's overbearing, conservative views cause him to snap and he embraces Death, committing suicide at Mayerling with his mistress, Mary Vetsera. This event completely breaks down Elisabeth and she begs Death to take her. However, her scorned lover now refuses to take her in.
Another decade goes by. Elisabeth still wanders from place to place, dressed in permanent mourning. Franz Joseph visits her from time to time, begging her to return home to Vienna, firmly believing that love is the answer to all sorrows, but Elisabeth refuses, citing that sometimes love is simply not enough to cure old wounds.
Finally, Death takes pity on the unhappy Empress. In a horrifying vision of the fall of the House of Habsburg, Franz Joseph finally meets his mysterious rival. He witnesses Death throw Lucheni a dagger, but being crushed under the weight of his imperial crest, he is powerless to save his wife.
On September 10, 1898, while on her way to board a ship in Geneva, Empress Elisabeth of Austria is attacked by a mad anarchist named Luigi Lucheni and is stabbed in the heart by a crudely improvised needle file. She dies shortly after and embraces her one true love, Death.
Principal characters
- Elisabeth...the Empress of Austria and later Queen of Hungary
- Death...a dashing young man having a love-hate affair with Elisabeth
- Luigi Lucheni...a mad anarchist and the narrator of the play
- Franz Joseph...the Emperor of Austria and later King of Hungary
- Archduchess Sophie...Franz Joseph's autocratic mother
- Rudolf...Elisabeth and Franz Joseph's son
- Max...Duke in Bavaria, Elisabeth's father
- Ludovika...Duchess in Bavaria, Elisabeth's mother and Sophie's sister
- Helene...Elisabeth's sister
- Countess Esterházy...the Mistress of the Household
- Count Grünne...Franz Joseph's advisor
- Cardinal Archbishop RauscherJoseph Othmar RauscherJoseph Othmar Rauscher was an Austrian Prince-Archbishop of Vienna and Cardinal.-Life:...
...the head of the Roman Catholic Church in Austria - Prince Scwarzenberg...the State Minister
- Frau Wolf...a brothel keeper in Vienna
Production history
The world premiere of Elisabeth, directed by Harry KupferHarry Kupfer
Harry Kupfer is a German opera director. He studied theatre in Leipzig and directed his first opera, Antonín Dvořák's Rusalka, in 1958....
, took place on September 3, 1992 at the Theater an der Wien
Theater an der Wien
The Theater an der Wien is a historic theatre on the Left Wienzeile in the Mariahilf district of Vienna. Completed in 1801, it has seen the premieres of many celebrated works of theatre, opera, and symphonic music...
in Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, 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. In October 2002, a 10th Anniversary miniseries of concerts took place at the Wiener Konzerthaus in Vienna. The Vienna production was revived on October 3, 2003 and ran until December 4, 2005.
Other productions have been mounted in the following countries. Current or upcoming productions are in bold:
- JapanJapanJapan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
: The Takarazuka Grand Theatre, The Takarazuka RevueTakarazuka RevueThe Takarazuka Revue is a Japanese all-female musical theater troupe based in Takarazuka, Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan. Women play all roles in lavish, Broadway-style productions of Western-style musicals, and sometimes stories adapted from shōjo manga and Japanese folktales. The troupe takes its name...
- Hyōgo, Japan- February 16, 1996 - current
- Japan: The Tokyo Takarazuka Theatre, The Takarazuka Revue- TokyoTokyo, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
, Japan- June 3, 1996 - current
- Japan: The Imperial Garden TheaterImperial Garden TheaterThe is a Japanese theater located in Marunouchi, Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan operated by Toho. Opened in 1911 as the first Western-style theater in Japan, it stages a varied program of musicals and operas.-External links:...
, The TohoTohois a Japanese film, theater production, and distribution company. It is headquartered in Yūrakuchō, Chiyoda, Tokyo, and is one of the core companies of the Hankyu Hanshin Toho Group...
Company- Tokyo, Japan- June 6, 2000 - ?; 2001–2002; 2004; February 2005; August 3, 2008 - February 2, 2009
- HungaryHungaryHungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
: The Open-Air Theatre of Szeged- SzegedSzeged' is the third largest city of Hungary, the largest city and regional centre of the Southern Great Plain and the county town of Csongrád county. The University of Szeged is one of the most distinguished universities in Hungary....
, Hungary- August 17, 1996 - September/October 1996
- Hungary: The Operetta Theatre (Budapesti Operett Színház) BudapestBudapestBudapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
, Hungary- October 5, 1996 - January 2005; July 2007 -
- Hungary: The Hungarian National Theatre- MiskolcMiskolcMiskolc is a city in northeastern Hungary, mainly with heavy industrial background. With a population close to 170,000 Miskolc is the fourth largest city of Hungary It is also the county capital of Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén and the regional centre of Northern Hungary.- Geography :Miskolc is located...
, Hungary- Autumn 1999 - April 2001
- SwedenSwedenSweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
: Musiktheatern i Värmland- KarlstadKarlstadKarlstad is a city, the seat of Karlstad Municipality, the capital of Värmland County, and the largest city in the province Värmland in Sweden. The city had 61,685 inhabitants in 2010 out of a municipal total that during the first quarter 2010 was 84,885 inhabitants...
, Sweden- September 30, 1999 - January 9, 2000
- NetherlandsNetherlandsThe Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
: Amateur Dutch Production (1998) - Netherlands: Fortis Circus Theatre, Stage EntertainmentStage EntertainmentThe musical production company Stage Entertainment is based in Amsterdam, Netherlands. It has a very successful subsidiary in Germany based in Hamburg which almost has a monopoly in Germany.- History :...
, Scheveningen- November 21, 1999 - July 22, 2001
- GermanyGermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
: The Colosseum Theater, Stage Entertainment- EssenEssen- Origin of the name :In German-speaking countries, the name of the city Essen often causes confusion as to its origins, because it is commonly known as the German infinitive of the verb for the act of eating, and/or the German noun for food. Although scholars still dispute the interpretation of...
, Germany- March 22, 2001 - June 29, 2003
- Germany: The Apollo Theater, Stage Holding/Stage Entertainment- StuttgartStuttgartStuttgart is the capital of the state of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. The sixth-largest city in Germany, Stuttgart has a population of 600,038 while the metropolitan area has a population of 5.3 million ....
, Germany- March 6, 2005 - September 17, 2006
- Germany: Theater des Westens, Semmel Concerts/Premium Entertainment- BerlinBerlinBerlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
, Germany- April 20 - September 27, 2008
- October 2008 - April 2010 (toured throughout Germany, Switzerland, Belgium, and Austria. See tour dates below.)
- ItalyItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
: MiramareMiramareThe Miramare Castle is a 19th century castle on the Gulf of Trieste near Trieste, northeastern Italy. It was built from 1856 to 1860 for Austrian Archduke Ferdinand Maximilian and his wife, Charlotte of Belgium, later Emperor Maximilian I and Empress Carlota of Mexico, to a design by Carl...
Castle, Open-air Concert Version- TriesteTriesteTrieste is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is situated towards the end of a narrow strip of land lying between the Adriatic Sea and Italy's border with Slovenia, which lies almost immediately south and east of the city...
, Italy- July 21–27, 2004; July 31 - August 6, 2005
- FinlandFinlandFinland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
: Turun Kaupunginteatteri, The Municipal Theatre of Turku- TurkuTurkuTurku is a city situated on the southwest coast of Finland at the mouth of the Aura River. It is located in the region of Finland Proper. It is believed that Turku came into existence during the end of the 13th century which makes it the oldest city in Finland...
, Finland- September 23, 2005 - December 30, 2006
- SwitzerlandSwitzerlandSwitzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
: Thunersee Open-Air Theatre- ThunThunThun is a municipality in the administrative district of Thun in the canton of Bern in Switzerland with about 42,136 inhabitants , as of 1 January 2006....
, Switzerland- July 19 - August 30, 2006
- JapanJapanJapan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
: Umeda Arts Theatre- OsakaOsakais a city in the Kansai region of Japan's main island of Honshu, a designated city under the Local Autonomy Law, the capital city of Osaka Prefecture and also the biggest part of Keihanshin area, which is represented by three major cities of Japan, Kyoto, Osaka and Kobe...
, Japan. Original Vienna Production.- March 28 - April 30, 2007
- South KoreaSouth KoreaThe Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...
: Samsung Electronics Hall- SeoulSeoulSeoul , officially the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea. A megacity with a population of over 10 million, it is the largest city proper in the OECD developed world...
, South Korea.- February 9 - May 13, 2012
Song list
Additional songs have been added for some productions of Elisabeth that are not featured in all productions. Also the order of songs is often switched, which is the most noticeable 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
- No Coming Without Going (Kein Kommen ohne Geh'n) - 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)
- To Each He Gives His Own (Jedem gibt er das Seine) - Sophie, Franz-Joseph, the Court
- Things Never Happen As Planned (So wie man plant und denkt...) - Lucheni, Sophie, Hélène, Elisabeth, Franz-Joseph
- Nothing is Difficult (Nichts ist schwer) - Franz-Joseph, Elisabeth
- All Questions Have Been Asked (Alle Fragen sind gestellt) - Wedding Chorus (and Death in the Takarazuka production)
- She Doesn't Fit (Sie passt nicht) - Sophie, Max, Wedding Guests
- The Last Dance (Der letzte Tanz) - Death
- An Empress Must Shine (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 (finale completely rewritten for the Takarazuka production and partially for the Hungarian version.)
- The Shadows Grow Longer (Die Schatten werden länger) (Preview) - Death
- The Cheerful Apocalypse (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, except the Takarazuka production)
- Elisabeth, Open Up My Angel (Elisabeth, mach auf mein Engel) - Franz-Joseph, Elisabeth, Death
- Milk (Milch) - Lucheni, the Poor (and Death in the Takarazuka production)
- 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 (originally only Franz-Joseph and Elisabeth in the original Vienna and Hungarian productions)
Act Two:
- Kitsch (Kitsch) - Lucheni
- Éljen (which is Hungarian for "long live...") (Éljen) - Hungarian Crowds, Lucheni (omitted 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, sans the Hungarian staging)
- Mama, Where Are You? (Mama, wo bist du?) - Young Rudolf, Death
- Mama, Where Are You? (reprise) (Mama, wo bist du reprise) - Young Rudolf, Death (Original Dutch production only; the scene was inserted into the gap made by moving the earlier song into act one)
- She Is Insane (Sie ist verrückt) - Elisabeth, Miss Windisch
- Nothing, Nothing, Nothing at All (Nichts, nichts, gar nichts) - Elisabeth (originally a dance-sequence with Elisabeth as Titania from A Midsummer Night's DreamA Midsummer Night's DreamA Midsummer Night's Dream is a play that was written by William Shakespeare. It is believed to have been written between 1590 and 1596. It portrays the events surrounding the marriage of the Duke of Athens, Theseus, and the Queen of the Amazons, Hippolyta...
, missing the second half of the song in the Takarazuka production) - I Belong To Me (Ich Gehör Nur Mir reprise) - Elisabeth (Takarazuka productions only)
- Us or Her (Wir oder sie) - Sophie, The Court
- Don't Play the Prude (Nur kein Genieren) - Madame Wolf, Lucheni, Whores
- The Last Chance (Or 'The Malady') (Die letzte Chance (Maladie)) - Death, Elisabeth
- Between Dream and Reality (Zwischen Traum und Wirklichkeit) - Elisabeth (Toho Japanese productions only, also recorded for the Stuttgart production cast recording, though not utilised in the actual show)
- Argument between Mother and Son - Franz Josef & Sophie (Streit Mutter und Sohn) (proceeds Sophie's solo "Bellaira")
- Bellaria (Bellaria) - Sophie (Primarily appeared in Hungarian and Japanese productions starting in 1996; Has been present in all productions since then, except for the Takarazuka production)
- The Restless Years (Die rastlosen Jahre) - Franz-Joseph, The Court, Ladies-in-Waiting
- Hunt (Jagd) - A sequence referencing Elisabeth's hunting trips in Europe in the original Viennese production (deleted in all but the Hungarian production)
- The Shadows Grow Longer (Die Schatten werden länger (Reprise)) - Death, Rudolf
- Argument Between Father and Son (Streit Vater & Sohn) - Rudolf, Franz Joseph (first seen in the Dutch and Essen productions, then inserted into the Viennese revival and subsequent German productions)
- Hate (Hass) - Anti-Semites & Lucheni (cut from the Takarazuka productions due to controversial content)
- Conspiracy (Verschwörung) - Rudolf, Hungarian Nationalists (does not appear in the Vienna production; expanded for the Takarazuka version)
- Like You (Wie du (Reprise)) - Elisabeth, Max's Ghost (does not appear in the Takarazuka production)
- If I Were Your Mirror (Wenn ich dein Spiegel wär) - Rudolf, Elisabeth
- The Mayerling Waltz (Mayerling-Walzer) - Rudolf, Death, Mary Vetsera (orchestrations expanded in the Takarazuka production since the Star Troupe 1996 performance and used for current productions)
- Rudolf, Where Are You? (Dirge) (Rudolf, wo bist du? (Totenklage)) - Elisabeth (a duet with Sophie's Ghost in the Dutch and Hungarian productions)
- No Coming Without Going (Kein Kommen ohne Geh'n Reprise) - Death (Takarazuka productions only)
- My New Assortment (Mein neues Sortiment) (Kitsch reprise) - Lucheni
- 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 (Missing first half of the song in the Takarazuka stagings)
- The Veil Descends (Der Schleier fällt) - Elisabeth, Death
- Closing Music (Schlussapplaus) - Instrumental (Length and assortment of themes vary from production to production)
CD and DVD releases
Elisabeth has been known to inspire a collector's mania that does not limit itself solely to audio and visual memorabilia. However, as of November 2007, there have been a total of at least twenty-five cast albums, complete works, demos, and promotional albums/singles, as well as eight commercial DVDs of the show, released to the public. These releases do not include countless other artists' solo albums and special compilations that also feature songs from the musical. Listed here are a few from the more mainstream, or better-known, productions.VIENNA 1992 Elisabeth — original cast recording (Originalaufnahmen aus dem Musical Elisabeth)
Elisabeth: Pia Douwes, Der Tod: Uwe Kröger, Luigi Lucheni: Ethan Freeman
Polydor GMBH - 513 792-2
VIENNA 1996 Elisabeth — complete live recording (Live aus dem Theater an der Wien Gesamtaufnahme des Musicals Elisabeth)
Elisabeth: Maya Hakvoort
Maya Hakvoort
Maya Hakvoort is a Dutch musical actress.Maya Hakvoort studied singing at the conservatory of Maastricht and acting and dancing at the kleinkunst-academy "De Trap" in Amsterdam, before she started gathering practical musical experience in Holland, Germany, Austria and Belgium.She debuted in the...
, Der Tod: Addo Kruizinga, Luigi Lucheni: Bruno Grassini
Polydor GMBH - 531 481-2
- On 19 and 20 January 1996, a complete live recording was made of the original Vienna run.
SCHEVENINGEN 1999 Elisabeth — original Dutch cast album
Elisabeth: Pia Douwes, De Dood: Stanley Burleson, Luigi Luicheni: Wim van den Driessche
Polydor - 543 335-2
ESSEN 2001 Elisabeth — original German cast album (Highlights der deutschen Urauffürung im Colosseum Theater Essen)
Elisabeth: Pia Douwes, Der Tod: Uwe Kröger, Luigi Lucheni: Carsten Lepper
Polydor GMBH - 549 800-2
VIENNA 2004 Elisabeth — Revival cast recording (Aktuelles Cast Album, Wien)
Elisabeth: Maya Hakvoort, Der Tod: Máté Kamarás, Luigi Luicheni: Serkan Kaya
HitSquad Records 6680530
VIENNA 2005 Elisabeth — complete live recording (Gesamtaufnahme live aus dem Theater an der Wien)
Elisabeth: Maya Hakvoort, Der Tod: Máté Kamarás, Luigi Luicheni: Serkan Kaya, Kaiser Franz Joseph: André Bauer, Erzherzogin Sophie: Else Ludwig, Erzherzog Rudolf: Fritz Schmid
HitSquad Records 668262
- On 30 and 31 October 2005, a complete live recording of the Vienna Revival was made. A more popular item among fans is a DVD of the show recorded on these same two nights. A November 2007 release of the same live recording in widescreen spread over 2 DVDs also boasts a 1-disc companion with a short history of backstage interviews, pictures, and production videos from the last thirteen years of the musical, subtitled in English and Japanese.
- CDs and DVDs have also been released for each of the seven Japanese productions of the Takarazuka RevueTakarazuka RevueThe Takarazuka Revue is a Japanese all-female musical theater troupe based in Takarazuka, Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan. Women play all roles in lavish, Broadway-style productions of Western-style musicals, and sometimes stories adapted from shōjo manga and Japanese folktales. The troupe takes its name...
, and additionally for the Japanese 10th anniversary concert in February 2006. A CD has been released for the Vienna 10th anniversary concert which was staged in 2002.
External links
- Elisabeth-Musical.org (English)
- Stacy's Musicals: Elisabeth info page (English)
- Website for the current Semmel Concerts production in Berlin (German)
- Official website for the Budapest Operetta Theatre (Hungarian & English)
- Official English website for the Vienna Revival production (German & English)
- Official Website for the Vienna Revival Japan Tour (Japanese)
- Official website for the 2009 Takarazuka production (Japanese)
- Official fan club for the Stage Entertainment production in Stuttgart (German)
- Official Thunerseespiele website for the Swiss production- Videos and Picture Gallery only (German)
- Official website for the original Stage Entertainment production in Scheveningen (Dutch)
- Official website for 2012 EMK Musical Company's upcoming Korean production of "Korea's Elisabeth: The Elisabeth in Korea" (Korean)