Glossary
Pas de Deux - A duet danced between, traditionally, a man and a woman who can be a part of the principal group of dancers or the ensemble.
Corps de Ballet - The group of dancers which make up the ensemble of the ballet, excluding the principal dancers.
The end of the Habsburg dynasty was unexpected and tragic. What became known as the Mayerling Incident was a murder-suicide pact proposed by crown Prince Rudolf to his mistress Maria Vetsera, who was 17 years old at the time. What truly happened the night of their death remains a mystery, but the factors leading up to the moment of their deaths allow historians to create possible scenarios to what might have happened on that fateful night of the 30th of January 1889.
While the prince and his young lover were the principals, the ensemble also played important parts throughout the years that preceded the incident. The women from Austria-Hungarian monarchy and aristocracy were some of the characters with most influence in this narrative. These women played central parts in the life of Rudolf and their actions influenced him more than others. Alongside the mystery of it all, these relationships are the reason why ballet choreographer Kenneth McMillan decided to adapt this dramatic part of history and create the ballet Mayerling in 1978.
This article will explore each relationship through their representation as pas de deux and the women through their solos. Analysing how each ballet persona represents the women can lead to a better understanding of their participation and motivations in relation to the circumstances that led to the incident.
Mayerling Playbill
Meet our principals! Below is my version of a historical 'Playbill' where you have a quick introduction to the participants of our story - and the focus of our article.
The Incident
Crown Prince Rudolf and Maria Vetsera met in November 1888, which marked the start of a turbulent relationship that culminated in their deaths in January 1889. The couple was introduced by Countess Marie Larisch, cousin to the prince - who had been infatuated with him for some time. The couple quickly became infatuated with each other, even being seen together on social occasions. Although Baroness Maria Vetsera was brought up alongside her sister to be married to men of higher social standings, the match was untimely as the prince was already married to Princess Stephanie of Belgium.
While the Baroness was certain that her bond with the Prince was unique, she was not the only one to whom he proposed the murder-suicide pact. Mizzi Kaspar, one of his many previous mistresses, received the same proposal but was against the idea and even threatened to expose the Prince to the authorities, though she never did. Nonetheless, the connection between Rudolf and Maria was a strong one; whether it was because of lust or true love it is uncertain, but they were committed to each other enough to die together.
The day before the incident, Rudolf headed to the Mayerling lodge, located 30 km from Vienna, with the tale that he was going on a hunting trip with two friends - who would end up finding the bodies of the two lovers the following morning. How Maria Vetsera arrived there is uncertain. It is known that she was previously being chaperoned by Countess Larisch for a shopping trip, who noticed the young girl went missing in the middle of the day. What went on during that final night is known only to the two lovers. Maria’s body was found naked, shot in bed, whilst Rudolf was found sitting in a chair, also shot but in possession of a gun.. Some final letters were written by the couple; these were the only proof that Maria Vetsera agreed to die alongside her lover - even then still leaving room for many a conspiracy.
The Ballet
Created by renowned ballet dancer and choreographer Kenneth MacMillan, adapting songs from the masterful Franz Liszt, this three-act ballet was unlike any other that preceded it. Telling a 'real life story', Mayerling was one of the great successes of MacMillan's choreography career. As it was a retelling of a historical event, MacMillan took four years to complete the ballet, due to his extensive research alongside English writer (and not historian) Gillian Freeman.
As with any piece of historical fiction, it is important to question the approach of the producers in regards to their accuracy. Freeman was asked if everything that is presented in the ballet could be verified, to which she replies, "Yes, absolutely, everything.". While they do not release the sources used, my research proved it was relatively easy to compare scenes from the ballet to chapters in the history books written on the moments featured throughout the piece. During their time researching the Mayerling Incident, Freeman describes how much easier it was to obtain the correct facts regarding the beginning of the story rather than their final moments as "[...] all Rudolf's effects were destroyed". The viewer, whether aware of the historical providence of the ballet or a complete beginner on the story is able to understand each relationship portrayed and the circumstances that lead to the final tragedy.
Adapting history into a medium that tells the story in movements rather than verbally might be one of the hardest approaches to dramatisation, but MacMillan not only succeeded but also created a powerful ballet exploring the psychology of these historical characters through dance. Clement Crisp, ballet critic who closely followed the work of MacMillan, describes him as a "beautiful erotic poet in movement", especially when describing his pas de deux - a key part of the Mayerling ballet used to exploring the women and the nature of their relationship with the Crown Prince portrayed in the piece.
The ballet follows a timeframe of eight years but with facts coming around much quicker than they did in real time. The celebrations of the marriage between Rudolf and Stephanie and the first meeting between the Prince and the young Baroness is separated only by one act, when in reality the wedding happened seven years before the ill-fated lovers became acquainted. This quick pace is excusable as the ballet requires the story to be told solely through the emotions portrayed by the dancers. MacMillan created seven pas de deux in this ballet, all exploring the relationships between Prince Rudolf and the women around him. Each dance represents his search for love and his failure to find it, time and time again.
The Women
This section will explore the women individually. It will discuss their portrayal in the ballet, and whether their pas de deux with Prince Rudolf and the solo performances are an accurate reflection of the real women which inspired these dancing dames. Finally, each section will attempt to establish whether their portrayal is positive for their individual narratives as women and if they are truly accurate to the facts and 'image' that they were portrayed as throughout history.
Empress Elisabeth, the Distant Mother
One of the most well known monarchs in Austrian history, Elisabeth of Bavaria is represented throughout Mayerling as a strong Empress and a distant mother. She married young and in love, and was not the biggest fan of court life. Whilst she did care for her children, she did so only from afar - especially when it came to her only son. He was sent away from a young age to be trained for military and imperial life. Elisabeth’s mother-in-law believed that the empress would be unable to raise the heir to the throne and thus distanced her from her son, something that would arguably lead to the development of Rudolf’s darker personality.
Elisabeth, or Sissi as she was called by her family, grew up being encouraged by her parents to revel in the country and her creativity. Her love story with the Emperor-to-be was portrayed by many a movie through the years - with the 1955 picture starring Romy Schneider being one of the most famous, and romanticised. Nonetheless, her wondrous love story lost its strength as the years went by and imperial duties required her and Franz Joseph to spend time apart. Her relationship with Rudolf also became damaged as time went by due to the distance and lifestyle.
During the first act of the ballet, there is a heavy focus on Rudolf's relationship with his mother. From her disappointment in finding him in a kiss with her niece to a heartbreaking pas de deux where we witness a desperate Rudolf looking for his mothers approval, understanding and love. Throughout the dance, Elisabeth is portrayed as a strong woman in her beliefs, not even letting her son’s cry for help affect her - at the very start of the choreography in this section she gently pushes away from his embrace.
With the idea of a strong woman commonly being juxtaposed with the one of a good mother, throughout Elisabeth's narrative this is instead portrayed as joint aspects of her character. The Empress is portrayed as trying to be a good mother by maintaining her strength. One of her attempts to maintain Rudolf's image - as much of it was left to salvage anyway - is represented when she intensely charges towards her niece, Countess Larisch, when the woman is found in Rudolf's bedroom attempting once more to seduce her cousin. After all she could not have the prince having an affair with a married woman in court. Striking fear and stating her position in the dynamic allows the viewer to perceive her as a strong-willed woman that Sissi the Empress truly was.
After this episode of "motherly love" the Empress is only seen in instances where the entire court is present - with a small focus on her alleged affair with Scottish hunter George 'Bay' Middleton, something that deeply bothered Rudolf. No matter how many affairs he had, how dare his mother cheat on his father? Her presence in the ballet is strong and memorable, much as the Empress herself was.
Princess Stephanie of Belgium, the Neglected Wife
Princess Stephanie met Prince Rudolf as a young girl. She was 15 when they fell in love, and the Austrian heir, who was already 20, proposed not long after their introduction. From the start of their relationship she was not favoured by the Empress, who did bless their union, but this was simply out of obligation. Despite this, the couple got married in 1881 and had a lovely start to their marriage - something that did not last for long. As time went by, the two realised just how little they had in common and Rudolf maintained many mistresses throughout their years together.
Something that helps historians better understand Stephanie's relationship with Rudolf and her life within the Austrian court is an autobiography. Stephanie wrote a book about her marriage - from the early days of their relationship until the Prince's death. Throughout it she discusses the first year of their marriage in a very impersonal way, something that makes clear just how much the couple distanced from one another as the years went by. More interesting aspects of her book are her relationship with the Empress, who was very open about her feelings towards Stephanie but still 'used' the princess as a stand-in for events she did not desire to attend, and how the Austrian court made no effort to include or even care for her after the Prince died. The undermining of the Princess by the court, while not shown in the ballet, deserves to be included in this analysis as it most likely happened due to her "inability to have an heir" - her sole task in the eyes of the court. While she did have a daughter with Rudolf, this failure to have a son is believed to be Rudolf's fault. Due to his many affairs, Rudolf contracted syphilis and, it is rumoured, passed it onto Stephanie who became infertile. This was not mentioned by Stephanie in her writing.
The portrayal of their marriage in the ballet is not introduced with the initial happiness that the couple lived through. During the celebrations of their union, Rudolf is seen flirting and dancing with another woman: Stephanie's sister. This betrayal with her sister creates the image of Rudolf as someone that did not care for Stephanie or their marriage from the start - something fabricated by MacMillan to move the story in a faster pace. Stephanie, who has her own solo and a pas de deux with Rudolf at the end of Act 1, is only seen briefly during the second act when her husband takes her along to one of his nights of dalliances at a pub - which has a masterful choreography for the corps de ballet. After her escape from the unsolicited outing with Rudolf, she is no longer a focus for the ballet, or for her husband, who, that evening, is introduced to Maria Vetsera.
Stephanie's solo and her pas de deux with Rudolf at the end of act one are meant to represent their wedding night, with striking differences between both. Throughout her solo, the princess is pictured waiting for her new husband, undressed by her ladies in waiting and practically floating through the stage with a sad aspect (but even then that could represent the initial bliss from the first year of their marriage). However, this quickly changes upon Rudolf's arrival, with an aggressive and nerve-wracking choreography taking place between the two.
[TRIGGER WARNING: mention of Sexual Assault]
Princess Stephanie dances a terrifying pas de deux with Prince Rudolf at the end of act one. From the end of her solo, which she dances peacefully to the encounter with her new husband which from the beginning of the dance shows his aggression towards her. Scaring Stephanie with a human skull and a gun - objects which the real Prince did have in his study - the dance evolves into a chase between prey and predator. With effortless lifts, in which the ballerina shivers her entire body so the audience understands just how afraid the Princess would have been, and forceful movements led by the male dancer, it is clear that the scene we are witnessing between the couple is one of sexual assault.
MacMillan mentions in the 1978 documentary that the scene represents their wedding night and reflects on Rudolf's fascination with death and the pressure on him to produce an heir. The product of this was the strong and fearful rape scene in the ballet. Whether their relationship involved these sad moments is uncertain - it was never alluded by Stephanie in her book nor mentioned in Rudolf's farewell letter found after his suicide. It brings into question the necessity for such a strong scene to end act one. Could it be there to suggest the change of sentiment regarding their marriage or was it simply trying to make Rudolf a villain? The use of such a violent scene is a very deliberate artistic choice on MacMillan's part, especially by portraying such a moment in their wedding night, a time when the couple still believed their union would be a happy one.
Overall, Princess Stephanie - whilst she is an important person to the narrative and history, in the ballet, she is simply the personification of the duties that Rudolf was meant to achieve - produce an heir, have a loving family as his parents ascend to the throne - and he failed in all of them. Nonetheless, for the one member of the Austrian court who produced a book about the incident (published in 1935), the princess seems to be as neglected in the ballet as she was in her marriage. The story she tells is simply of a victim who suffered from a wedding for political reasons, when it was originally in fact out of adoration for one another.
Countess Marie Larisch, the Flirtatious Cousin
Marie Larisch could be described as the instigator of the incident if Rudolf had not presented suicidal thoughts previously - but she was definitely a facilitator. She was the cousin who wished for his love but was denied it by Rudolf himself and his mother - who, upon realising this attraction, made sure to find a husband for her niece. Whether she stopped flirting with the prince it can not be said for certain - something the ballet portrays really well. Larisch herself was not known for her good manners, and was more noted for her “arrogant” attitude that drove much of the Austrian court away. She became an easy “target” for MacMillan to paint in the ballet with a negative light.
She dances one of the first pas de deux of the ballet with Rudolf. Throughout it there is a duality in how the prince receives her approaches - from an initial acceptance to the attempts to push her away, represented by lifts, pirouettes and actual pushes woven into the dance. The section finishes with Larisch stealing a kiss and being caught by the Emperor and Empress who, while being represented as shocked, do not cause a scene as this was at the end of the wedding celebration, simply allowing Rudolf to walk away with his bride.
The Countess returns several times throughout the ballet, being instrumental on the introduction of young Vetsera and the prince. In the ballet, she convinces the young girl that the couple are destined to be together with what seems to be a spread of tarot cards - making an exchange for the final card, representing their doomed future, as if the woman knew that the match would be fatal. Now, it is obvious that this was entirely fabricated by MacMillan. To predict that not only the murder-suicide pact would be proposed but accepted by Vetsera is something that in no way the Countess was capable of doing - but as they needed a "villain," and she paid this price. However, she was still blamed by the Empress for Rudolf's death and never saw her aunt again, having been banished by the Viennese court altogether.
The final time we see Marie Larisch is during a pas de deux in Rudolf's bedroom, in which he is clearly ill - both in his physical and mental health. The Countess attempts to help the young man with whom she was infatuated, as she finds him soon after administering a dose of morphine (something to which he became addicted). Even then, at his most fragile state, Rudolf continuously tries to get rid of her, helped by his mother once she enters the room and discovers the Countess there.
A woman who was denied the attention of the man she desired, Marie Larisch can be described - both in real life and at the ballet - as scorned. She was blamed for the tragic ending of the Habsburg dynasty, something that she could not control but the Viennese society made sure she was punished for it. Throughout the ballet, she is portrayed as slightly desperate, whether for love or lust, it is up for the audience to decide - though in real life she was most likely desperate for attention than anything else. She went on to work for the film industry, fueling them with information about the Habsburgs - even assisting with the production for a short period of time.
Baroness Maria Vetsera, the Naïve Mistress
Finally, it is time to discuss the otherwise unknown to history, Maria Vetsera. The young mistress who believed herself so in love with the Austrian prince that she accepted to end her life alongside him. Whether she was coerced to end her life or not, is a question that might never be answered, though in her farewell letter to her mother she states that "[...] I could not resist love [...] I am happier in death than life" making historians believe that she was in agreement with the pact. In the ballet, MacMillan represents the young Vetsera as a sensual, excited character with the prospect of being introduced to the prince. During the performance one forgets that she is meant to be a 17 year old girl as she is at times portrayed as a temptress.
However, MacMillan representing Maria in such light also alludes to how the girl was perceived by the late 19th century Austrian society. Having a more "advanced" figure from a young age, she had always attracted the attention of men who would be unaware of the young age of the girl. Throughout the ballet, Maria can be seen as both the young and trusting girl who was in love with a prince and, at times, as the erotic lover that Rudolf lusted after. Very little is known about her real self other than the fact she was raised to aim for a fortuitous social match. Her family, even though they had connections with the royals, was not part of the court and Maria was therefore not a public person before the start of her affair with the crown prince.
All of the pas de deux between the lovers are charged with sexual or romantic energy. At the beginning of their first dance together she arrives in his bedroom wearing a large coat that is quickly removed to reveal a sheer and loose fitting nightgown. This first duet is incredibly sensual, with the choreography alluding to sexual activity with different lifts and poses throughout it. Something very important about this section is the representation of Maria's lack of fear of Rudolf's unusual interests, represented by her playing with his gun and dancing with the human skull he keeps.
Their final dance represents the moments before their deaths at Mayerling and, according to what is believed to have happened, Maria is the first to die. Beforehand however, their final moments together are represented in the last pas de deux. A very emotionally charged dance, they cling onto one another until the moment that they planned arrives. The public sees the couple together for a final time before hearing a gunshot and a distraught Rudolf comes back onto the front of the stage, doing a final tragic solo before joining his lover in death. This difference at the time of their deaths aligns with the way their bodies were found at the lodge - Maria's body already cold and Rudolf dead more recently. The reason for this is one of the many mysteries of the Mayerling Incident.
In many ballets, the first and final scene are the same - for Mayerling it is no different. The first scene introduced to the audience is of a funeral, with no pomp and few people present. It is only at the end that we find out that the simple funeral was Maria's, but this simplicity was not because of her class, but to hide the truth of the Prince's death. While both of them requested to be buried together, to acknowledge the suicide of the heir to the throne would be not only be scandalous, but also would mean that he would not be granted the royal burial his parents wished for him. Therefore, they blamed his death on his weak health, something known to the Austrian public, and made sure to bury his mistress in a hidden and far away location. Her mother would not be told where Maria's body was for two years.
Our finale
Whether the ballet holds a feminist undertone to it, the answer is probably no - especially as the main character is Prince Rudolf; his relationships with these women simply guide the story. Their importance throughout is undeniable, with their ballet personas being most often similar to the reality of each of these 19th century women.
Nonetheless, the fact that these women were well-portrayed through the ballet, regarding their personalities, status and character, is incredibly important for women's history. Even though they are not the focal point of the story and the ballet would definitely not pass the Bechdel Test, they are key parts of the portrayal of this moment in history. They are not only remembered but also introduced to different audiences - those who might be familiar with history, or who were drawn in simply by the status of a MacMillan ballet. These audience members will become aware of the story of each of these women and thus ensure that they are not forgotten or written out of this narrative.
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If you're interested in watching the ballet in its entirety, the following streaming services (both with free trial periods) have professional recordings: MarqueeTV and Royal Opera House.
Further reading
Barkeley, Richard, and Phyllis Auty. 1959. ‘Review of the Road to Mayerling: Life and Death of Crown Prince Rudolph of Austria’, The Slavonic and East European Review, 37.89: 543–46 <https://www.jstor.org/stable/4205093 >
Condé Nast. 2022. ‘The True Story behind Mayerling, Brought Back by the Royal Ballet This October’, Tatler <https://www.tatler.com/article/the-true-story-behind-mayerling >
Derek Bailey. 1978. ‘Mayerling: South Bank Special, Part 2, 1978.’, Www.youtube.com <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_6AWGGpckwo>
Hamann, Brigitte. 2012. The Reluctant Empress: A Biography of Empress Elisabeth of Austria, Google Books (Faber & Faber) <https://books.google.co.uk/books?hl=en&lr=&id=TycC_OQQ6QQC&oi=fnd&pg=PP6&dq=empress+elisabeth&ots=4xcpH0ddja&sig=aNJwPhWHB6BfQE9K9e3fxnpZXy4&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=rudolf&f=false >
Parry, Jann. 2010. Different Drummer: The Life of Kenneth MacMillan, Google Books (Faber & Faber) <https://books.google.com.br/books?hl=en&lr=&id=wmAIBzxtiR8C&oi=fnd&pg=PP1&dq=kenneth+macmillan+mayerling&ots=XH6_1yKrXt&sig=kZ_nrDt0t-SwTBxe2AwPF9_0x3w&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=%20mayerling&f=false >
Rezzutti, Paulo , and Cláudia Thomé Witte. 2022. Sissi E O Último Brilho de Uma Dinastia (Leya)
Schönbrunn Group. [n.d.-a]. ‘CSI Mayerling – How Did the Crown Prince Really Die?’, Die Welt Der Habsburger - the World of the Habsburgs <https://www.habsburger.net/en/chapter/csi-mayerling-how-did-crown-prince-really-die >
Schönbrunn Group . [n.d.-b]. ‘An Unhappy Union: Rudolf and Stephanie’, Die Welt Der Habsburger - the World of the Habsburgs <https://www.habsburger.net/en/chapter/unhappy-union-rudolf-and-stephanie >