Adri

24 y.o. Slovak artist, future theatre costume designer, currently in my Elisabeth das musical era, resident stan of DJKT & their Czech Elisabeth production

[adridoesstuff]

You know what is a testament to Elisabeth being a truly well written show? Me repeatedly returning to it over and over again.

If you know me, I change hyperfixations every like 2-3 months. And after the initial boom, I almost never stop to think about the hyperfixation to the extent of the first hyperfixation again. Yet with Elisabeth, I keep coming back and the love and pull is still just as strong as the first time. And there is always something to think about, to analyze, to nerd over

[adridoesstuff]

On repeat shuffle tag game🎵

Thank you for tagging me @awihog

rules: shuffle your 'on repeat' playlist and post the first 10 tracks, then tag 10 people

Sexo, Violencia y Llantas (ROSALÍA)

Wall of Sound (Charli xcx)

Mio Cristo Piange Diamanti (ROSALÍA)

Der letzte Tanz (Maté Kamarás, 2005 live recording of Elisabeth)

Divinize (ROSALÍA)

Open up (Charli xcx)

Ballsaal im Schloss Schönbrunn/Sie passt nicht (Else Ludwig, Dennis Kozeluh, 2005 live recording of Elisabeth)

La Rumba Del Perdón (ROSALÍA)

Novia Robot (ROSALÍA)

Dios Es Un Stalker (versión Francotiradora) (ROSALÍA)

I'm tagging @sogimusixals @fitzrove @pablosfrestelse and whoever else wants to do this <3

[adridoesstuff]

I love that DJKT JCS decided to make Jesus mentally unwell no matter what, but adjusted what kind of mentally unwell based on the actors playing him. Like, Pavel's Jesus is a workaholic experiencing burnout while Pája's Jesus is in a depressive spiral.

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Portraits of Lukáš Ondruš and Dušan Kraus as Judas from the DJKT production of Jesus Christ Superstar

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Just... this moment from yesterday's DJKT Six singalong. Gonna live rent free in my mind for a while

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DJKT Six sing along on Saturday, DJKT JCS in Brno on Tuesday and PotO in Vienna next Sunday. Gonna be so fed for the summer theatre break

[adridoesstuff]

*me, seeing Pavel in his costume for Mamma Mia*: Pavel, you SLUT

[adridoesstuff]

*me, seeing Pavel as Jack Favell in Rebecca*: Pavel, you utter SLUT

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Portraits of Charlotte Režná as Ich and Felicita Victoria Prokešová as Mrs. Danvers from DJKT Rebecca

[burrs-aroace]

nichts ist schwer meta: what in your opinion does the setting (for 1992 Vienna) during nichts ist schwer mean? both literally (where /is/ "between heaven and earth" and how and why did they get there) and metaphorically (what does this setting mean for them as characters, for their relationship, especially in contrast with boote in der nacht-- what does it mean when that song takes place in a similarly liminal third dimension versus a real-world location, sometimes with other people?). the only other scenes that take place in weird pockets of time outside of the universe like this one are (iirc, I don't have my full libretto on me at the moment ☹️) prolog and der schleier faellt, perhaps kitsch. why have something like this between two characters who are very much real, as opposed to lucheni and death, who have the other scenes like this? moreover what do you think the ferris whell symbolizes during that song, and having them float around in the carriage?

also: how do you think changing that setting affects boh the scene and the characters and their relationship, and the plot? does it take away from it or add something new?

not putting my own thoughts here both bc I'm more curious about yours and also because I haven't spent a lot of time thinking about this before submitting this ask I was remembering your photo edit of them during this number and I thought heyyy why is it like that

that is a great great ask

First of all I think the Ferris wheel was chosen because of the Prater in Vienna (even though the Ferris wheel didn't exist at the time they met. It was opened 1897 for the 50th anniversary of FJs reign (yes that's one year before the anniversary)) But therefore it has the connection to Franz and Nichts ist schwer ist sorta his theme (as the motif is playing in his bow). and also it's referred to as "Pratergondel" by the 2012 cast who had the same stage in this scene.

But I don't think they're literally standing on a real Pratergondel (aside from the fact that it didn't exist yet). We know it's set between Ischl and their wedding and I think it's sorta like a dream sequence (but not necessarily a dream) that sums up this whole time. For me it's like manifestations of their views and thoughts and these manifestations come together and express it all.

Maybe it is a dream Elisabeth and Franz both had (as we know Franz does have dreams that predict the future or have deeper meaning like Am Deck der sinkenden Welt lol) (the fact that they're both laying on the ground at the end could also indicate that), maybe it isn't a dream and it's a real conversation they shared. But this ambiguity of us not knowing when where what is the reason why it's happening out of universe and time.

"Between heaven and earth" for one is because of the Ferris wheel I think. Cause you're so high up you could call it between heaven and earth. It could also be a small nod to the German saying "being in the seventh heaven" when you're in love (tho that's a little far-fetched). It could also refer to the god-like position of the emperor and empress. More than humans/earth, but not really god/heaven, more the closest to god a human could be. For me it's all of the above.

For their characters this is a really important song in my opinion. There are a lot of important lines to help us understand how Franz's character works (it's also the first song in which we can learn more than four lines about his inner world since Jedem gibt er das Seine and So wie man denkt doesn't give us a lot), especially in contrast to Elisabeth's. We learn that he is a really overthinking cautious and also conscious person - he knows that she's gonna struggle and tells her exactly that and ofc is aware of the court watching and judging him and then of course her in detail, because he grew up in it. Whereas she thinks a lot more naively and is like "we have eachother so it's all going to be fine" (who can blame her, she's a naive 15/16 girl). But this shows a contrast in their personalities and as we know later they will never be able to fully understand eachother since they are too different.

But for this moment/dream/time span/whatever it is they see past these differences and say that they only need eachother for things to go well. Which is really bittersweet considering how it's gonna go. So this floating around in a dreamy space is getting the hopeful lovey vibe across. Big contrast to the stage design in Boote in der Nacht.

Changing the setting takes away the ambiguous vibe and metaphoricality (?) of the song. It makes it more real. But since the lines are still the same the overall meaning to their relationship and characters stays the same mostly. (Tho it takes away their gothy vibe) (but the kissing and spinning and waist grabbing is really appreciated. I die from cuteness)

[adridoesstuff]

Also, just adding to the above: my understanding of setting Nichts ist schwer on a ferris wheel cabin

The old Vienna design for Elisabeth is intentionally making the choice of visually presenting us, a modern-day audience, the monarchy and everything surrounding it as the Prater, an amusement park. Big, expensive, flashy, artificial, garish, kitchy... A giant spectacle put on for the simple masses and their entertainment. (I'm talking specifically the monarchy, since all of these visual cues are largely not present when we get into scenes where the monarchy and it's pressure doesn't take center stage, but we instead look at characters as individuals with their individual struggles).

But, back to the ferris wheel. (At least where I come from) the ferris wheel is seen as a bit of a ride for young couples in love. It's slow, often has small cabins which can sometimes only fit two people and so, the couple that goes on a ferris wheel ride can have a moment of privacy while the wheel makes a rotation, away from the prying eyes of everyone around them. Very idyllic.

Within the show's narrative structure, the setting also offers Elisabeth and Franz this private moment away from their families, which they never got in real life while they were engaged (since Elisabeth would be constantly chaperoned by either her parents or a governess). But, even if they do seem to be alone for this fleeting moment, the monarchy is still present and looming all around them in the form of the ferris wheel. After all, the cabin they are on has the shape of the Austrian eagle and the background projection and the cabin's movement does indicate, that even though they may be having this sweet moment now, the ride will eventually end and they will have to come back down to the earth. And we, the audience, just like people standing below a ferris wheel, still watch them from down below, feeling warm at heart at the at their at first sight innocent young love and participate in the spectacle. For what is a spectacle or a show without an audience?

[ingledews-books]

Having cool mutuals is the greatest thing in the world I think

[sogimusixals]

You know how Elisabeth associates herself with seagulls/ writes about herself as a seagull in her poetry?

You know how the coat of arms of the Habsburgs are eagles?

You know how eagles prey on seagulls?!

And I love how Sisi used seagulls also in association with her love of the sea and solitude and freedom, but this one is another symbolism I like to think of.

[adridoesstuff]

The most recent ask got me thinking: within Elisabeth, who is truly in control of the narrative?

Lucheni is our de facto narrator, but just how much influence does he have on what happens? He certainly isn't in complete control, since the story always has to end with him killing Elisabeth, him taking his life and the purgatory loop he's in resetting once again. But just how much of the story he tells us is his own subjective telling and just how much of it is firmly set?

And where does Tod fall in all of this?

Is he just another character in the story, who Lucheni made up to justify his narrative? Is he an omnipresent manifestation of everyone's (even Lucheni's) pull to self destruction? Or is he a real being within this show's world and is he potentially the real puppet master of the narrative? Is it him who keeps Lucheni in this time loop? How much control does he have here? Does he conciously participate in the retelling of Elisabeth's life every night because he wants to experience what happened over and over again or is he simply obliged to?

And how much control does Elisabeth herself have over the telling of her own life? Is she Lucheni's puppet the entire time? Or does she get reborn with each telling every night and just like Lucheni, is stuck in a loop, where she gains her freedom each night only to be brough back over and over?

[adridoesstuff]

sorry if this comes off wrong I just really like talking about this show 😅 but if I may stand in defense of the conveyer belt elisabeth dsf ending, I think it's like the right level of dehumanization for her role in the plot by that point. she thinks she is guaranteeing her freedom by giving herself over tl death, but she's really allowing herself to be come nothing more than an object, another thing death has killed. she's insignificant, and, fundamentally, no longer belongs to herself, despite what she thinks. so its effective (to me) to have her whirled offstage like an object that doesn't mean anything, like a setpiece, as she's now completely betrayed and dehumanized herself

That is a really interesting angle to observe this ending form!

We could certainly discuss at length as to how much agency Elisabeth has at the end of the show, whether what happens in the final minutes are her concious decisions or if even she is just another figure in the story Lucheni and/or Tod are reanacting every night (this also puts forth the question of who is actually the puppet master in this story and who of these two, who stand above the narrative, is the one shaping it).

My main gripe with this ending is that it makes me laugh because of just how much Elisabeth's body on that turntable looks like a suitcase in airport baggage claim (and I think laughing isn't really an apporpiate thing to be doing or feeling during the last moments of the show).

[adridoesstuff]

Here's my opinion on ways directors chose to end Elisabeth and how much sense these endings make to me story-wise:

Elisabeth dies during the kiss and Tod has to lay down her lifeless body into her already open coffin while Lucheni hangs himself above them: peak angsty and morbid ending. Elisabeth is free, her soul was able to pass on and she finally gained the freedom she yearned for. And Tod, who finally got to hold and kiss the woman he yearned for for 45 years, now is suddenly dragged back to the reality as Elisabeth falls limp in his arms. He has to face the fact, that no matter how much he tried, he still is Death and he could have never kept a human soul with him no matter what he felt.

Tod carries Elisabeth away, but she dies in his arms: good, gives a bit more of a romance angle, but I just feel like this ending is a lot less open for interpretation as to what happens. As we see in the Essen version, Elisabeth is in the afterlife during the Prolog (unless the Elisabeth we see there is only a portrait or a mirage), and Tod doesn't look particularly affected by her dying in his arms in the ending. So, either Sisi remains with everyone else in the land of the dead (not great for her, since she's now stuck forever with all the people she wanted to be free of) or Tod got to keep just her body and not her soul (better outcome). But either way, if you're on Tod's side, then this is the ending for you.

Elisabeth dies during the kiss, but Tod lays her down onto the ground and Elisabeth's body goes away on the stage turntable: this is colloquialy known as the "baggage claim Sisi" ending and this one just infuriates me. Because they start off so well, but then the turntable happens. And it looks ridiculous and kills any morbid atmosphere this could have had.

Elisabeth and Tod enter together into the afterlife and Tod then reemerges on top of a tower with just her nightgown: let's just say that this ending is for the Elisabeth and Tod shippers. And once again, this one is kind of open for interpretation as to what actually goes on. But there are implications. And those implications give me that these two had intimate relations in the land of the dead. And I don't know if I am really a fan of this.

Elisabeth shoves Tod away from the kiss and walks away on her own: This is the independent Elisabeth I love to see! After trying to achieve complete personal freedom her entire life, she finally has the chance to be truly free, so it's only logical for her to go off on her own and leave behind everyone and everything that was a part of the life she so despised. True catharsis achieved.

Elisabeth and Tod ride off in his carriage into the sunset: This is just mockery in my mind. In my mind, trying to end off Elisabeth with her getting a "happy fairytale ending" by getting to be a couple with Tod is just missing the entire point of what Elisabeth wanted the entire show. Like this, she is once again in the same situation she was in with Franz, but this time around, we're supposed to be happy for her, even though she's once again prevented from being truly free by being tied to another man. And this time, it's for eternity, so in my mind, this is the worst directorial fate Elisabeth can experience after she dies.

[nerdghostich]

If La Pietà was for 1.5 ppl out there, this one is for 0.5

JCS Jesus x Elisabeth Der Tod/Smrt from very specific productions of very specific theater with very specific actors? Why the fuck not I HAD A VISION (and then got too lazy to go beyond a sketch lmao)

Based on the common theme of an Angel comforting Jesus before his arrest in Gethsemane gardens (because what's the point of JCS fanart if you cannot reference classic art pieces and make them gay).

Except it's an Angel of Death. THE Angel of Death.

And don't even get me started on the potential relationship of Jesus with Death as a concept and personification of Death as a person because I will not stop ranting for at least a decade. AND THEN I will go on about Judas and Death/Todd/Smrt because the version of Judas who is at least somewhat aware of the God's plan and the approaching Death is- yeah.

(Can we also talk about Jesus x Tod as the Temptation of Satan? No? Okay)

[nerdghostich]

La Pietà the sacrilegious gay version

Aka a story of how J went to see JCS in a random foreign town having zero expectations, screamed, cried, fell in love, blacked out for 3 days, and ended up with a painting of a fucking icon

Very obviously based on:

1. Pieta the painting by William Adolphe Bouguereau

2. Djkt Plzeň version of JCS which is to this day eating away my brain bit by bit by another bit

Also I still think that the sketch is in some ways cooler than the end version, so:

[adridoesstuff]

Jen já vím jak mám žít, Stíny AND Když se roztančím??? DJKT really said they will feed that mall audence