Gräfin Mariza
Libretto by Julius Brammer and Alfred Grünwald
Premiere: Theater an der Wien, Vienna, February 28, 1924
Act I: Count Tassilo, the new manager of the estate of wealthy Countess Maritza, is an impoverished aristocrat who has taken the menial job incognito—under the name Bela Törek—in order to provide a dowry for his beloved sister Lisa. Baron Karl-Stephan arrives to inform Törek that, thanks to the sale of all his possessions and property, his accounts have been settled and that, although penniless, he owes nothing. Word reaches the estate that Maritza will soon be visiting, ostensibly to announce her engagement to a Baron Koloman Zsupán. Actually, there is no such person—Maritza has chosen a character in Johann Strauss’ operetta The Gypsy Baron and, to ward off the constant stream of suitors, announced her betrothal. Tassilo is smitten with his boss, but she treats him condescendingly. He is surprised to see that Lisa has arrived with Maritza; he tells her that he has taken the job as part of a bet with a friend and that she must promise to keep secret his identity. Maritza is surprised when a Hungarian gentleman shows up, claims to be the real Koloman Zsupán, and insists that Maritza marry him. Laughing it off, she joins her society friends for dinner. Törek, left on the terrace, is insulted when Maritza sends him a bottle of wine with a patronizing message attached. He and his gypsy friends launch into a wild csardas. When Maritza asks him to repeat it for her, he refuses and is fired. As she and her party head for the local night club, Maritza is stopped by a gypsy woman, Manja, who reads her palm and tells her that she will soon lose her heart to a gentleman of the nobility. She asks Törek to stay on. The act ends as Mariza retires for the night and throws a rose down to Törek from her bedroom window.
Act II: Lisa is quite taken with Zsupán—he confesses to her that if he were not still in pursuit of Maritza, he would spend his nights dreaming of her. Tassilo and Maritza, meanwhile, are fantasizing how their lives might be if their social positions were not so divided. Prince Popolescu mentions to Maritza that Törek has been spending much time with Lisa and that his motives as estate manager are suspect. Maritza infers that Törek is taking her for a ride, both romantically and financially. At a soirée, she accuses him of duplicity and, insultingly, throws a roll of banknotes at him. When he turns them over to the musicians and refers to Lisa as his sister, a delighted Maritza—even as Tassilo storm out—realizes her error and knows that their hearts are one.
Act III: Tassilo, assuming that he is again fired, readies to leave the estate. An air of formality between him and Maritza prevents them from expressing their true feelings for one another. Tassilo’s well-to-do Aunt Bozena arrives and informs him that she has just bought back all his possessions. When Bozena’s servant Penižek alludes to the family fortune, Maritza is reassured that Tassilo is not after her fortune. Lisa and Zsupán agree to marry and settle in Varasdin, as Maritza and Tassilo, with the help of a reference letter that she had written him, finally break the ice and look forward to a life together.
