Elisabeth (musical)


Elisabeth is a Viennese musical commissioned by the Vereinigte Bühnen Wien and originally produced in German, with a book and lyrics by Michael Kunze and music by Sylvester Levay. It portrays the life and death of Empress Elisabeth of Austria, also known as "Sisi", the wife of Emperor Franz Joseph I, from her engagement and marriage in 1854 to her murder in 1898 at the hands of the Italian anarchist Luigi Lucheni; it focuses on her growing obsession with death, as her marriage and the empire crumble around her just before the turn of the 20th century.
According to Vereinigte Bühnen Wien, it has been translated into ten languages and seen by over 12 million spectators in 14 countries, making it the most successful German-language musical of all time.

Synopsis

In the "world of the dead", Luigi Lucheni is being interrogated by a judge as to why he has murdered the Empress Elisabeth. 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 Queen of 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, 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 begins a chain of events that will eventually topple the Habsburg Empire. Elisabeth herself very soon comes to regret her seemingly "fairy-tale marriage". 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—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 two children, including her only son Rudolf, are taken away by Sophie, Elisabeth calluses over and becomes cold and selfish. 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 newfound 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 pressure 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, saying that sometimes love is simply not enough to cure old wounds.
In a horrifying vision of the fall of the House of Habsburg, Franz Joseph at last meets his mysterious rival. He watches as Death tosses a dagger to Lucheni, but, crushed by the weight of his imperial crest, he is powerless to save his wife.
On 10 September 1898, while on her way to board a ship in Geneva, Empress Elisabeth of Austria is mortally wounded, stabbed right in the heart with a crudely sharpened file. As she lies dying, Death comes to claim her spirit with a kiss and an embrace.

Principal characters

Productions

The premiere of Elisabeth, directed by Harry Kupfer, took place on 3 September 1992 at the Theater an der Wien in Vienna, Austria, where it ran until January 1997. After a brief hiatus, it reopened on 4 September 1997 and closed on 25 April 1998. The production was revived in October 2003 and ran until December 2005, and again from 2012 to 2014.
An open-air concert production at Schönbrunn Palace in Vienna, Austria, played in June 2019, June 2022, June to July 2023, and June 2024. A production at Karreveld Castle in Brussels, Belgium, ran in August 2022.

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 – Judge, Lucheni, DeathLike You – Elisabeth, MaxLovely to Have You All Here – Ludovika, Hélène, FamilyNo Coming Without Going – Death Black Prince – Elisabeth To Each He Gives His Own – Sophie, Franz-Joseph, the CourtThings Never Happen As Planned – Lucheni, Sophie, Hélène, Elisabeth, Franz-JosephNothing is Difficult Any More – Franz-Joseph, ElisabethAll Questions Have Been Asked – Wedding ChorusShe Doesn't Fit – Sophie, Max, Wedding GuestsThe Last Dance – DeathAn Empress Must Shine – Sophie, Countess Esterházy, Ladies-in-WaitingI Belong to Me – ElisabethThe First Four Years – Lucheni, Elisabeth, Sophie, Ladies-in-Waiting, Franz-Joseph, The Court, HungariansThe Shadows Grow Longer – DeathThe Cheerful Apocalypse – Lucheni, a Student, a Journalist, a Poet, a Bohemian, a Professor, coffeehouse patronsChild or Not – Sophie, Countess Esterházy, Young Rudolf Elisabeth, Open Up My Angel – Franz-Joseph, Elisabeth, DeathMilk – Lucheni, the PoorBeauty Care – Countess Esterházy, Ladies-in-WaitingI Just Want to Tell You – Franz-Joseph, Elisabeth, Death

Act Two

Kitsch – LucheniÉljen – Hungarian Crowds, Lucheni When I Want to Dance – Death, Elisabeth Mama, Where Are You? – Young Rudolf, DeathMama, Where Are You? – Young Rudolf, Death She Is Insane – Elisabeth, Frau WindischNothing, Nothing, Nothing at All – Elisabeth Us or Her – Sophie, The CourtDon't Play the Prude – Madame Wolf, Lucheni, WhoresThe Last Chance – Death, Elisabeth
  • Argument between Mother and Son – Franz Josef & Sophie Bellaria – Sophie The Restless Years – Franz-Joseph, The Court, Ladies-in-Waiting, LucheniHunt – A sequence referencing Elisabeth's hunting trips in Europe in the original Viennese production The Shadows Grow Longer – Death, RudolfArgument Between Father and Son – Rudolf, Franz Joseph Hate – Anti-Semites & Lucheni Conspiracy – Rudolf, Hungarian Nationalists, Death Like You – Elisabeth, Max's GhostIf I Were Your Mirror – Rudolf, ElisabethThe Mayerling Waltz – Rudolf, Death, Mary VetseraRudolf, Where Are You? – ElisabethMy New Assortment – LucheniShips in the Night – Elisabeth, Franz-JosephOn the Deck of the Sinking World – Lucheni, Death, Franz-Joseph, the HabsburgsThe Veil Descends – Elisabeth, DeathClosing Music – Instrumental

CD and DVD releases

, at least twenty-five cast and studio albums, demos, and promotional albums/singles, as well as eight commercial DVDs of the show, have been released to the public, including the following.
  • Vienna, 1992 Elisabeth – original cast recording ': Elisabeth: Pia Douwes, Der Tod: Uwe Kröger, Luigi Lucheni: Ethan Freeman, produced by Jimmy Bowien on Polydor GMBH - 513 792-2
  • Vienna, 1996 Elisabeth – live recording ': Elisabeth: Maya Hakvoort, Der Tod: Addo Kruizinga, Luigi Lucheni: Bruno Grassini, on 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 on Polydor - 543 335-2
  • Essen, 2001 Elisabeth – original German cast album : Elisabeth: Pia Douwes, Der Tod: Uwe Kröger, Luigi Lucheni: Carsten Lepper on Polydor GMBH – 549 800-2
  • Vienna, 2004 Elisabeth – Revival cast recording : Elisabeth: Maya Hakvoort, Der Tod: Máté Kamarás, Luigi Luicheni: Serkan Kaya on HitSquad Records 6680530
  • Vienna, 2005 Elisabeth – live recording : Elisabeth: Maya Hakvoort, Der Tod: Máté Kamarás, Luigi Luicheni: Serkan Kaya, Erzherzog Rudolf: Fritz Schmid on HitSquad Records 668262
  • Japan, 2016 Elisabeth – live recording of 2016 tour : Elisabeth: Mari Hanafusa; Der Tod: Yu Shirota / Yoshio Inoue; Luigi Lucheni: Ikusaburo Yamazaki / Songha; Erzherzogin Sophie: Mayo Suzukaze / Tatsuki Kohju; Erzherzog Rudolf: Yuta Furukawa
  • Japan 2023 Elisabeth – live recording of 2022–23 tour : Elisabeth: Reika Manaki; Der Tod: Ikusaburo Yamazaki / Yuta Furukawa; Luigi Lucheni: Ryuji Kamiyama / Mario Kuroba; Erzherzogin Sophie: Miyuki Tsurugi / Mayo Suzukaze; Erzherzog Rudolf: Shouma Kai / Toshiki Tateishi.