About the work
Operetta in three acts by Oscar Straus, with a libretto by Julius Brammer and Alfred Grünwald. It premiered on 12 February 1920 at the Berliner Theater in Berlin, with Fritzi Massary in the female lead.
Plot
In Russia in 1910, Count Dimitri saves the young Vera from the advances of the vengeful Prince Paul – it is love at first sight. The slighted prince condemns the count to death and forces Vera to marry a general, but at a ball Dimitri is granted the chance for one last waltz. Vera tricks the prince into briefly handing her command, uses it to have herself married to Dimitri in the palace chapel, and the prince is finally forced to accept defeat.
Cultural significance
Carried by Fritzi Massary's star turn, the operetta became one of the major Berlin stage hits of the early Weimar years and was filmed several times, including in 1934, 1953 and 1973.