Nandu News Reporter Li Chunhua Since its premiere in 1992, the German musical "Elizabeth" has attracted 12 million viewers around the world and has been performed more than 9,000 times. This pinnacle of German musicals will premiere in the form of a musical version of the concert

Nandu News reporter Li Chunhua Since its premiere in 1992, the German musical "Elizabeth" has attracted 12 million viewers around the world and has been performed more than 9,000 times. This pinnacle of German musicals will be presented in a musical version of the concert The show landed in Guangzhou for the first time and performed five times at the Guangzhou Grand Theater from September 26th to 30th. The legendary life of "Princess Sissi" Elisabeth will be sung in Yangcheng, leading the audience to re-understand the most charming and legendary figure in the Austro-Hungarian Empire. This is the only stop in South China not to be missed!

The German musical "Elizabeth" was co-created by playwright Michael Kunze and composer Sylvester Revie. It combines beautiful music, wonderful plot, touching performances and excellent stage design. It has been performed in 14 countries and translated into 10 different languages. It has set a historical record at the box office and is known as one of the most successful German musicals to date. The play tells the dramatic and touching legendary life of Queen Elisabeth of Austria and Hungary, recreating key moments in Elizabeth's life in a dramatic way: from the girl who longed to dream, write poems, and ride horses into the wind, to her relationship with Emperor Franz. She entered marriage at first sight and became a queen, but was assassinated in 1898.

The plot revolves around her marriage, court life, personal pursuits and entangled relationship with death. It focuses on presenting Elizabeth's complex mental journey from a carefree princess to an independent queen, and finally encounters tragedy. . Through a multi-layered narrative, the musical reveals her loneliness and struggle in royal life, as well as her pursuit of freedom and self-realization. Multiple themes such as inner loneliness, self-growth, shackles of responsibility, and women's awakening are intertwined in the play, allowing audiences of different ages to find resonance in Elizabeth's story.

Due to its extremely high popularity, the "Elizabeth" musical version concert has been held four times in the open square of Schönbrunn Palace in Vienna since 2019, attracting audiences from all over the world to watch. The musical version of the concert performed in Guangzhou is jointly produced by Austria's Vienna Union Theater (vereinigte bühnen wien), the producer of the original musical, and Denmark's Lion Entertainment (Lion Entertainment).

Inheriting the tradition and version of the Schönbrunn Palace concert of "Elizabeth", this "Elizabeth" musical version concert will not only present concentrated and refined stage beauty, but also bring original gorgeous styles and exquisite costumes; the performance lineup will be Inviting leading actors from Europe, and backed by a specially invited orchestra from overseas, nearly 30 actors dressed in original costumes combined dramatic performance and choreography to present 39 golden songs from the play.

"I learn and grow in my own way, and protect myself from danger..." "I Only Belong to Me" is a classic song in the play. With its exciting melody and touching lyrics, it sings about Elizabeth's actions. The voice of an independent woman reflects the light and power of self-awakening and free will deep in a woman's heart. This song not only tells the story of Elizabeth's lifelong personal creed, but also spans time and space, allowing every listener to find themselves in it. The shadow of the song, feeling the resonance and encouragement from deep within, has become a "golden song" for countless German musical audiences.

The songs in the play show Elizabeth's inner contradictions and complexity through rich characters and profound psychological descriptions. The beautiful melodies are closely connected with the plot, pushing the plot to the climax again and again. Elizabeth is not only a modern woman pursuing freedom and self-realization, but also a tragic figure bound by royal etiquette. Her marriage to her husband, Emperor Franz Joseph, her relationship with her son, Prince Rudolf, and her mysterious and entangled relationship with Death all add depth and drama to the show.

Different from the stereotype of "standing and singing", the musical version of "Elizabeth" retains its drama to the greatest extent, placing the entire live band on the stage to experience Elizabeth's legendary life with the actors.Gil Mehmert, director of the musical version of the concert, re-outlined the narrative structure with a more compact rhythm, focusing more of the stage on the historical context centered on the legendary life of Princess Sissi. In his opinion, this musical version of the concert is far more than just a concert. It not only has beautiful dance scenes, but also has excellent dancers and choreographers. Compared with musicals, it is just more refined and concentrated. , like a "sophisticated version" of a movie.

This China tour has invited the critically acclaimed actress Annemieke van Dam to join her. Anne Michael is from Rotterdam, the Netherlands. She has performed "Elizabeth" in 3 languages ​​in 18 cities in 5 countries. She is the best spokesperson for the role of "Elizabeth". In the play, the character of Death, the embodiment of Elizabeth's inner shadow, is played by actor Lukas Mayer. As the youngest actor in history, he also has an extraordinary understanding and interpretation of this role. André Bauer, who plays Emperor Franz Joseph, has joined the cast of "Elizabeth" since 2005 and is a "veteran" member of the cast. He will use his own performance to show the role of this character in marriage. and the struggles and choices in palace politics. The assassin Luccheni is played by Riccardo Greco. In his narration, Elizabeth's life picture slowly unfolds.

designed a "stepped" three-dimensional stage on site, and the performances were staggered and layered; a large central door frame was built in the middle of the stage to freeze classic moments. There is a huge LED screen behind the stage. Well-known designer Michael Balgavy is invited to participate in the multimedia design, leading the audience through different scenes at any time, and the lighting follows it and changes constantly, creating a truly immersive look and feel.

In addition, the actors' costumes restore the opulence of European aristocrats, and also show the characters' personalities and emotions through fine tailoring and decoration. The heroine "Elizabeth" changed into 12 "popular" classic looks in the play to show the different faces of "Sissi".

stills source: Shanghai Cultural Plaza Photography: Zheng Tianran