The Land of Smiles | |
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Directed by | Max Reichmann |
Written by |
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Starring | |
Cinematography | Reimar Kuntze |
Edited by | Geza Pollatschik |
Music by |
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Production company | |
Distributed by | Bavaria Film |
Release date |
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Running time | 102 minutes |
Country | Weimar Republic |
Language | German |
The Land of Smiles (German : Das Land des Lächelns) is a 1930 German operetta film directed by Max Reichmann and starring Richard Tauber, Mary Losseff and Hans Mierendorff. [1] It is an adaptation of the operetta The Land of Smiles composed by Franz Lehár. [2] Lehár himself appeared in the film in a small role. It was shot at the Emelka Studios in Munich with sets designed by the art director Hans Jacoby.
The operetta was again adapted for a 1952 film The Land of Smiles starring Jan Kiepura. [3]
It is no coincidence that the master of the house chose the Lehár operetta "The Land of Smiles" for a performance in honor of his daughter's forthcoming marriage to an "exotic prince", a Japanese diplomat. It's meant to be a metaphor of what might await them. The well-known plot of the Lehár operetta about a tragic marriage between a Chinese prince named Sou Chong and a young Austrian shows parallels to the upcoming, real connection of the lord's daughter, who breaks up with her local admirer Gustl and her future husband from the Far East has turned towards. Both storylines are soon interwoven, and the operetta reflects reality.
Prince Sou Chong brought a wife with him from his trip to Europe. He hides the young woman in a pavilion in the park, fearing that his traditional family will be hostile to his wife. He only lets his sister Mi in on his secret, who soon becomes friends with the stranger. When Sou-Chong's uncle Chang suggests that his nephew choose four wives from the country's most distinguished families, the young prince initially refuses, but then has to admit that he is already married. However, his uncle continues to press him and so Sou-Chong ultimately follows the old laws of his country. When his wife Liesl found out about this, she was very unhappy. Then, however, her cousin and admirer from her homeland surprisingly turns up and gives her comfort. They then agree to escape together. However, the plan fails. However, Sou-Chong has now realized that his wife will never be happy under the given circumstances and releases her. He hides his sadness.
Liesa recognizes herself as a Central European in the sad woman from the operetta, and she begins to question her upcoming connection: the customs and customs as well as the habits to which the Austrian in the song in the East Asian foreign country has to submit make the heroine unhappy. The couple fails because of the incompatibility of cultural differences. And so, in the operetta, Gustl and the prince's wife flee Chinese pomp to return home to Europe. Liesa also thinks better and decides to accept the proposal of loyal Gustl instead of becoming unhappy abroad despite all the wealth.
Franz Lehár was an Austro-Hungarian composer. He is mainly known for his operettas, of which the most successful and best known is The Merry Widow.
Oscar Nathan Straus was a Viennese composer of operettas, film scores, and songs. He also wrote about 500 cabaret songs, chamber music, and orchestral and choral works. His original name was actually Strauss, but for professional purposes he deliberately omitted the final 's'. He wished not to be associated with the musical Strauss family of Vienna. However, he did follow the advice of Johann Strauss II in 1898 about abandoning the prospective lure of writing waltzes for the more lucrative business of writing for the theatre.
The Land of Smiles is a 1929 romantic operetta in three acts by Franz Lehár. The German language libretto was by Ludwig Herzer and Fritz Löhner-Beda. The performance duration is about 100 minutes.
Richard Tauber was an Austrian tenor and film actor.
Mary Losseff ; was a Russian-born British singer and film actress.
The Staatstheater am Gärtnerplatz, commonly called the Gärtnerplatztheater, is an opera house and opera company in Munich. Designed by Michael Reiffenstuel, it opened on 4 November 1865 as the city's second major theatre after the National Theatre.
Alfred Maria Willner was an Austrian writer, philosopher, musicologist, composer and librettist.
Fritz Löhner-Beda, born Bedřich Löwy, was an Austrian librettist, lyricist and writer. Once nearly forgotten, many of his songs and tunes remain popular today. He was murdered in Auschwitz III Monowitz concentration camp.
Marta Eggerth was a Hungarian actress and singer from "The Silver Age of Operetta". Many of the 20th century's most famous operetta composers, including Franz Lehár, Fritz Kreisler, Robert Stolz, Oscar Straus, and Paul Abraham, composed works especially for her.
Der Zarewitsch is an operetta in three acts by Franz Lehár. The German libretto by Heinz Reichert and Bela Jenbach is based on the play of the same name by Polish author Gabriela Zapolska. One of his later operettas, Lehár composed the work as a vehicle for Richard Tauber, the acclaimed Austrian tenor. The work received its first performance at the Deutsches Künstlertheater in Berlin on 21 February 1927, with Tauber and Rita Georg in the leading roles.
Victor Léon, also Viktor Léon was a well-known Jewish Austrian-Hungarian librettist. He collaborated with Leo Stein to produce the libretto of Franz Lehár's romantic operetta The Merry Widow.
"Yours Is My Heart Alone" or "You Are My Heart's Delight" is an aria from the 1929 operetta The Land of Smiles with music by Franz Lehár and the libretto by Fritz Löhner-Beda and Ludwig Herzer. It was for many years associated with the tenor Richard Tauber, for whom it was written. The aria is sung by the character of Prince Sou-Chong in act 2. An American version of the show opened on Broadway in 1946 starring Tauber but it soon closed as Tauber had throat trouble.
The Land of Smiles is a 1952 West German operetta film directed by Hans Deppe and Erik Ode and starring Mártha Eggerth, Jan Kiepura and Walter Müller. It is an adaptation of the operetta The Land of Smiles composed by Franz Lehár which had previously been made into a 1930 film starring Richard Tauber. It was shot at the Tempelhof Studios in Berlin and on location in Thailand. The film's sets were designed by the art directors Willi Herrmann, Peter Schlewski and Heinrich Weidemann.
Vera Schwarz was an Austrian soprano, known primarily for her operetta partnership with Richard Tauber.
Bernard Grun was a German composer, conductor, and author. He is primarily remembered as the compiler of The Timetables of History.
Bernard Sinclair was a French singer (baritone) particularly associated with the repertoire of the opéra comique and operetta, but also opera. He is also an actor, playwright and director. He died in the 10th arrondissement of Paris.
Ferry Gruber was an Austrian-German tenor in opera and operetta. A member of both the Bavarian State Opera and Staatstheater am Gärtnerplatz in Munich for half a century, he focused on roles of the buffo genre and operetta. He made recordings, appeared on radio and television, performed internationally at major opera houses and festivals, and worked also as an operetta director and a private voice teacher. He was a favourite with the audience, and received the title Kammersänger.
Dorothea Chryst, also Dorli-Maria Chryst is a German operatic and operetta soprano.
Hans-Heinz Bollmann was a German operatic and operetta singer tenor.
Anne Lünenbürger is a German operatic soprano and Bavarian Kammersängerin.