Does slashing Death count as RPS or necrophilia?
Wow. I take back all my reservations in the previous post about Elisabeth: The Musical. ZOMG I am so addicted. The duet between Crown Prince Rudolf and Death is the best thing evar. Something which I feel I must prove.
Damn I love Wittelsbachs. (Incidentally: you know that Simpsons episode where Bart can't even tell if he's being sarcastic any more? That's pretty much how I'm feeling over this one. All I know is that I'm wondering if slashing Crown Prince Rudolf with Death counts as RPS.)
(For the curious: The Lyrics. Yes, they're in German - probably not very accurate German at that, as I didn't beta them very thoroughly as I typed them. You can struggle through with a dictionary like I did. There are going to be a few missing umlauts, being as I typed the words up as quickly as possible and couldn't be bothered. [Edit: damn, I forgot HTML hates umlauts, and I don't think I can bear to go through and insert the correct code. You'll have to just imagine the umlauts, won't you.] Ditto estzets, which I've transcribed as -ss throughout.)
Ein fruher Morgen im Jahre 1888, Rudolf, inzwischen ein nicht mehr ganz junger Mann, liegt auf dem Dach der Kutsche des Todes. Der Tod wendet sich vom Kutschbock nach ihm um.
TOD: Zeit, dass wir uns endlich sprechen.
Zeit, das Schweigen zu durchbrechen.
Du kennst mich.
Ja, du kennst mich!
Weisst du noch, du warst ein Knabe,
Also ich dir versprochen habe,
Dass ich dir
Immer nah bleib'.
RUDOLF: O, ich hab dich nie vergessen:
Meinen Freund, nach dem ich rufe,
Wenn mich meine Angste fressen...
TOD: Ich komm, weil du mich brauchst -
TOD & RUDOLF: Die Schatten werden langer,
Und doch bleiben alle
Blind und stumm.
Zum Klang der Rattenfanger
Tanzt man wild
Um's Godne Kalb herum.
Die Schatten werden langer!
Es ist funf vor zwolf!
Die Zeit ist beinah um.
RUDOLF: Zeit, den Riss der Welt zu sehen.
Konnt' ich nur das Steuer drehen!
Doch ich muss daneben stehen.
Man bindet
Mit die Hande.
TOD: Nichts ist schlimmer als zu wissen,
Wie das Unheil sich entwickelt,
Und in Ohnmacht zuseh'n mussen.
RUDOLF: Es macht mich
Vollig krank!
TOD & RUDOLF: Die Schatten werden langer,
Und die Lieder werden
Kalt und schrill.
Der Teufeskreis wird enger,
Doch man glaubt nur,
Was man glauben will.
Die Schatten werden langer!
Es ist funf vor zwolf!
Warum halt jeder still?
TOD: Was halt Dich zuruck?
Dies ist der Augenblick!
Greif nach der Macht!
Tu es aus Notwehr!
RUDOLF: Notwehr?
TOD & RUDOLF: Die Schatten werden langer
Was gescheh'n muss,
Das muss jetzt gescheh'n.
Der Teufelskreis wird enger!
Man muss dem Unheil
Widersteh'n.
Die Schatten werden langer!
Kaiser Rudolf wird
Der Zeit entgegengeh'n.
Comments
... that's really a very awesome song, despite the fact I have no IDEA what's going on in it. Except Angst, apparently. But then, German always sounds like Angst to me. :D
Have you ever heard anything by Garmana, a German folk rock group? Their lead singer produces the most amazing liquid trills. I have no idea what they're singing about, either...
Posted by: Helen | December 20, 2006 05:18 AM
*on repeat constantly now*
German is the BEST language for musicals. Der Glockner von Notre Dame is awesome (HELLFEUER! DER HELLE!). There's just something about tenor voices hacking through those words... even when they're things like "It's five to twelve, why are we still lingering?" which makes me think of two people popping off to lunch rather than, you know, Death duetting with a madman about long shadows and all that.
I presume you've watched the very, very slashy Youtube video of the Dutch production of this scene?
...and the even slashier video of the original production where Death leans in to kiss Rudolf?
Posted by: Andrew | December 20, 2006 09:16 PM
Oh, and you know there's this as well, right?
Posted by: Andrew | December 20, 2006 09:40 PM
Andrew, you are totally the *best* for reminding me of the existance of youtube for purposes of musicals :D:D I have read summaries of the productions (yes, including the version with the kiss. And the version with the cross-dressing.) but haven't seen any of them. *skitters off to youtube laughing maniacally.*
Posted by: Calliope | December 20, 2006 09:42 PM
Oh, and you know there's this as well, right?
Oh. Dear. God.
How many Wittelsbach musicals can the world take??? I must have it for my collection!!!
Not sure it'll quite be the same without the veryverygay Rudolf/Death interaction though....
Posted by: Calliope | December 20, 2006 09:45 PM
A spotter of historical royals and aristocrats writes: There's something particularly dramatic about this generation of Wittelsbachs. Ludwig II only let Bavaria join the German Empire on the understanding that he would succeed to the imperial throne on the death of Wilhelm I (of Prussia); if Wilhelm had died in his seventies then Ludwig might have been in a position to make good his claim, with all sorts of tempting counterfactual possibilities which I am underqualified to exploit.
Elisabeth's older sister Helene, I think, was engaged at one point to a British duke, I think William, twelfth duke of Hamilton, but etiquette demanded that the match was broken off as it would be improper for a sovereign to marry the younger of two princesses when the elder had married a mere duke. A similar story is told a century earlier about Queen Charlotte's older sister and John, third duke of Roxburghe, so it may be one of those myth-memes. The sotry probably comes from 'The Dukes' by Brian Masters, but I don't have a copy, despite having borrowed it many times from the library in my misspent youth.
Can't think of anything slashy about the Wittelsbachs, and the rumours that the present head of the family, Duke Franz, and his father Duke Albrecht liked to wear kilts in private hardly counts.
Posted by: Anonymous | January 12, 2007 11:11 PM
Oh my God...it's not like I can find people talking about German musical stars everyday... who are you people? Sorry I am just suprised to have found this place via Google. Yes of course you can slash Death, haha, and that's not RPS unless you start to slash the actors behind him...which is not impossible either:D
Posted by: Anonymous | March 27, 2007 09:09 PM