Elisabeth Pia Douwes keert terug in musicalhit Elisabeth

Few powerful women in world history have managed to stimulate the imagination as much as Empress Elisabeth of Austria. A quarter of a century after the Dutch premiere, producers Albert Verlinde, Jaco Kaasschieter and Matthijs Bongertman are bringing the beautiful musical about the life of this strikingly idiosyncratic and modern woman back to Dutch theaters.

International musical star Pia Douwes, who previously impressed both at home and abroad in the title role, returns in this new adaptation as the ambitious, empathetic woman who gave her heart to Emperor Franz Joseph at a young age. But who slowly but surely succumbed to the obligations and restrictions that court life brought with it. The musical contains numerous famous songs, including My life is mine, which expresses Sissi's life motto. Other leading roles are played by William Spaaij, Milan van Waardenburg (Les Misérables) and Ann van den Broeck.

The Story

When the musical Elisabeth had its world premiere in Vienna in the early 1990s, the makers stated that every generation deserves its own 'Sissi'. They based their play on new information about her life that had just been published: a voluminous biography and the diary entries of Elisabeth's Greek teacher. The play portrays the empress as a modern woman who wants to go her own way, but who became entangled in a life full of court etiquette and the impending downfall of the monarchy.

The message of the iconic musical has not become less relevant in the past thirty years. Sissi's life unfolded on the eve of the twentieth century, when nationalism, anti-Semitism and the looming revolution of the discontented underclass overshadowed the life of the elite. It was ultimately also anarchist Luigi Lucheni who violently ended her unhappy life.

The three producers and the Flemish director Frank van Laecke are responsible for this surprising new Dutch-language version that opens up the special life story for a new generation. They are going all out, not only with the impressive cast, but also with a fourteen-piece orchestra that provides Elisabeth 's story with the grandeur it deserves.