We're going to go on a non-Lolita tangent for a minute, but it's going to come back around to Alice and the Pirates, I promise.
So, once upon a two years past, I stumbled over the clip of a Japanese musical. It looked vaguely Phantom-y, vaguely Labyrinthine, but not quite either. I sent it to a friend of mine, who also loves both movies, and the next day she came back. "Hey, Ruffles, did you know it's actually a German musical?" Turns out, it was a Japanese run of an extremely famous German production called Elisabeth das Musical.
And oh, boy, did the brain rot set in for the both of us.
Centered around the real-life Empress Elisabeth of Austria and Queen of Hungary, the musical invokes themes of death and romanticization and revolution. Sisi (Elisabeth's nickname) forms a bond with the personification of Death which turns into a strained love-hate romance as Sisi marries and becomes Empress. It's great!
If you're going to watch a bootleg, I'd suggest the one on YouTube starring Maté Kamaras as der Tod and Maya Hakvoort as Elisabeth. Listen, the original Pia Douwes and Uwe Kröger are wonderful, too! Uwe has this indominable stage presence. But our beloved Maté is this blessed little chaos goblin and to watch him is an absolute joy. It's like he's not working, he's getting paid to have a blast on stage. Also, like, Maya is the best Elisabeth. Sorry, Pia!
Sadly, the musical hasn't taken off in quite the same way in the U.S. - it's not been produced in any primarily English-speaking country as of yet - as it did in Europe (particularly Germany and Austria), Japan, or South Korea, but boy did it take off in Japan and South Korea! The show's been running over there since the late 90s.
That said, 2022 had weirdly been a boom year for Empress Sisi as a whole and I'm not sure where it came from. There have been plenty of films, TV series, and pieces of literature created about her life, but last year saw the film Corsage, the late release of the series Sisi, the miniseries The Empress and its companion novel, productions of the musical in South Korea and Japan (with a canceled run in Vienna), and, to my great surprise, a Lolita release! Upon further reflection, this shouldn't have been shocking. As I've already stated, the musical's done amazingly well in Japan.
Admittedly, I hadn't been keeping up with most releases over the last year. Mostly Metamorphose. Recently, I browsed through the other brands to see what was happening and found that Alice and the Pirates released "Elisabeth～a shining star in the dark night～". This is a reference to the famous painting of Empress Elisabeth, in which she wears jeweled stars and a gold-spangled dress. The print even features the portrait!
So, what did Alice and the Pirates give us?
First of all, this print:
Two jumperskirts:
A skirt:
This onepiece:
These OTKs and headdress.
A necklace and a clip version of her iconic hair jewels.
And, as you can see, four colorways of white, green, red, and black! I think the black makes the print look so nice and crisp, but I've always been a sucker for a good green.
As it's AatP, these pieces aren't super plus-size friendly, but damn if it isn't cute. Especially JSK II, with the lacy ruffles along the neckline. I do have to admit that while I'm not a big fan of the bows on the OP bodice (that gold doesn't quite match the print for me), the lace on the sleeves and along the neckline really do it for me. It's a design choice that reminds me of the musical's costuming.
There's this very specific structure of the sleeves based upon her coronation gown and the star-studded gala gown that make me draw the connection between the musical and the OP. We also see that beautifully swooped neckline. In order to conform better to the Lolita aesthetic, it's not nearly as dramatic. The lace trim has been exaggerated for the same reason.
Also, I can't tell you how much I love the neckline lace; it reminds me of the musical's wedding dress, as shown above with Maya. I'm bizarrely attached to that fringe because it's a cornerstone of a personal headcanon of mine involving der Tod's opening costume and -- yeah, okay. Back to the Lolita.
Anyway, I would love to see someone coordinating these pieces with some of the Empress's iconic styles. Her wildly long hair was her pride and at court she'd wear it in elaborate braids, so this would be a great opportunity to bust out your longest, biggest wigs and get your styling on! Go for your most elegant, glitzy Hime jewelry and make yourself sparkle. This is also your chance to bust out a fancy folding fan, as Elisabeth took to carrying one around to shield her face from the public eye.
I mocked up this coord by taking inspiration from Elisabeth's childhood in Bavaria. It was a very carefree life that left her woefully unprepared for the Austrian court. At least it was happy! Instead of more decorative, princessy styles, I wanted something light and airy and perfect for running around a spring meadow. I think I'd like to try a half-up, half-down hairstyle using Sisi's trademark braided crown and some clever weaving with the floral headband! There's also an added underskirt to mimic a lace trim. I've always loved a lace-trimmed hem.
Outfit Breakdown:
JSK: Elisabeth～a shining star in the dark night～ JSK II by Alice and the Pirates
Blouse: Deep-sea Pearl White/Black/Creamy White Semi-sheer Shoulder Blouse by Infanta
Underskirt: Chubby Foxes in Forest Beige Tiered Hem Lolita Underskirt by Miss Point
Headband: Vine Lily of the Valley Handmade Floral Design KC by Cat Box Lolita
Gloves: Shining of Star and Light of Hope lace short gloves by Alice and the Pirates
OTKs: Elisabeth～a shining star in the dark night～ OTKs by Alice and the Pirates
Boots: Clara Short Boots by Alice and the Pirates
Wig: 120CM Caramel Water Ripple Long Culry Synthetic Lolita Wig with Bangs by Yuchashui Wig
I would encourage anyone wanting to Goth it up to do so with some care. Empress Elisabeth, privileged as she was, was a severely depressed human being who died tragically during an extended period of mourning for her late son. As much as I love dunking on royalty, this isn't a part of a person's life that I'm down with trivializing.
With that little serious note, I hope you go out and live your best Empress life. May your fashion journey take you to a sunnier place than our beloved Sisi. If even one of you catches the Elisabeth das Musical brainrot from me, then I've done my job.
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