The land of smiles franz lehar biography

1929 operetta by Franz Lehár

The Land of Smiles (German: Das Land des Lächelns) is a 1929 romantic operetta in three acts by Franz Lehár. The German language libretto was by Ludwig Herzer [de] and Fritz Löhner-Beda. The performance duration is about 100 minutes.

This was one of Lehár's later works, and has a bittersweet ending which the Viennese loved.

The Land of Smiles - Guide to Musical Theatre

The title refers to the supposed Chinese custom of smiling, whatever happens in life. (The leading character, Prince Sou-Chong has a song early in the show, "Immer nur lächeln" ("Always smiling") which describes this.)

The Tauberlied

Lavishly produced, the show was built largely around the performance of the tenor Richard Tauber, a close friend of Lehár, for whom he customarily wrote a Tauberlied – a signature tune exploiting the exceptional qualities of his voice – in each of his later operettas.

On this occasion it was "Dein ist mein ganzes Herz" ("You are my heart's delight Franz Lehár’s The Land of Smiles | History & Premiere VEQ