The setting is
Vienna in
1914 bef
ore the outb
reak of war.
The arist
ocratic
and somewhat
jaded Prince N
icki, pu
rsued by
all the lad
ies, begins
a flirtat
ion with Mitzi
, a crippled h
arpist who wo
rks in a subu
rban win
e-garden, and
who is in tur
n idolized by S
chani, an
uncouth
and violent
ly jealous
butcher. Thei
r first enco
unter signific
antly tak
es plac
e in front
of St. Step
hen&#39
;s Cathedral on
Corpus Christ
i day, with N
icki among th
e emperor
's cav
alry regiment.
Later, i
n the ref
racted l
ight of falling
apple blos
soms in the
wine-garden-
-scenes of a di
stilled,
ethere
al beauty--Nick
i gradua
lly wins
her faith
and love. Meanw
hile, ami
dst the sumpt
uous and co
rrupt mil
ieu of the fam
ily palace, N
icki is drawn i
nto complicity
against
his will, as
his unscrupulo
us mother info
rms him he
must ma
rry Cece
lia, the da
ughter o
f a wealthy c
ommoner, in
order to revi
ve the fami
ly fortu
ne. Mitz
i has a v
ision of The I
ron Man
(a symbol of
the declin
ing pow
er and positi
on of the Haps
burg dynast
y) and falls be
fore the cruc
ifix in
fear; but her
love rem
ains steadfas
t, and
she protests
her fai
th though
abused
by her mo
ther and Scha
ni. Infuriat
ed by her
rejection,
Schani thr
eatens to
kill Nicki on h
is weddin
g day un
less Mitzi ag
rees to marry
him. Fol
lowing the p
rocessiona
l splendor of
the cathedral
wedding, Sc
hani appears to
carry out
his thr
eat, but Mitz
i arriv
es in ti
me to sto
p him; and thro
ugh the downpo
uring rain Nic
ki sadly gazes
on his true l
ove in the cro
wd as he dr
ives away with
his bri
de.　　The se
tting is
Vienna in
1914 before
the outbre
ak of war. The
aristocratic a
nd some
what jaded Prin