Bavaria Media and Beta Film have joined forces on Mozart Mozart, a six-hour drama that reimagines the legacy of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart through the eyes of his (real-life) sister, Maria Anna Mozart.
The series, from the creators of German costume drama hit Sisi, has received a first-season commission from German public broadcaster ARD and Austria’s ORF.
Set in the late 18th century, the series centers on Amadeus’s sister, Maria Anna Mozart, portrayed by Havana Joy (Love Sucks), who steps into her brother’s shoes after his dismissal from the Salzburg court threatens the family’s future. When Wolfgang, played by Eren M. Güvercin (Druck, Eldorado), proves too volatile to secure favor at the court of Emperor Joseph II, Maria Anna disguises herself as her brother, captivating Vienna’s elite and drawing the envy of Mozart’s rival, Antonio Salieri. Her deception grows increasingly complex as she attempts to maintain the ruse, protect her family’s reputation, and navigate her relationship with Salieri.
The series stands apart from the upcoming English-language series Amadeus, which Sky has commissioned in the U.K., and will see White Lotus actor Will Sharpe play Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. That drama is a reimagining of Peter Shaffer’s 1979 stage play, Amadeus, which inspired Milos Forman’s 1984 Oscar-winning adaptation.
“What we definitely didn’t want to do was a remake of Amadeus,” Mozart Mozart showrunner Andreas Gutzeit, who created the series and co-wrote it with Swantje Oppermann (Dignity), tells The Hollywood Reporter. “The desire is to tell a new story for a younger audience, and to tell the forgotten story of Maria Anna, who was a musical genius of her own, perhaps as talented, or more so, than her superstar brother.”
“Mozart’s sister isn’t a secret, but we don’t know much about her life, other than she was also a child prodigy and that she and Amadeus toured together to every royal court in Europe at the time,” notes Clara Zoë My-Linh von Arnim, who is directing the series. “But she had the misfortune of being a woman and then, when she turned a marriageable age, she was dragged off the stage, in the truest sense of the word. There is a lot of speculation on how big her influence was on Amadeus’ music, on his compositions, over the years.”
Jessica De Rooij, who composed the award-winning music for Sisi, is back for Mozart Mozart, giving Mozart’s iconic compositions a contemporary edge for the show. Gutzeit and Jens Freels (Dignity) serve as executive producers, with Simona Weber producing.
The ensemble cast includes Eidin Jalali (The Swarm, Maxton Hall), Verena Altenberger (Wild Republic), Peter Kurth (Babylon Berlin), Philipp Hochmair (Freud), Sonja Weißer (Maxton Hall), Lisa Vicari (Next Level), and Annabelle Mandeng (Vikings: Valhalla).
Produced by Gutzeit’s Story House Pictures in co-production with ARD, ORF, and The Dreaming Sheep Company, Mozart Mozart is being sold internationally by Bavaria Media and Beta Film.
