In Death Takes a Holiday , it's just after World War I and the loneliest of souls arrives at an Italian villa disguised as a handsome young Prince, and for the first time experiences the joys and heartbreaks of life. The show began as an Alberto Casella play from the 1920s that was made into a much-loved 1934 film starring Fredric March as Death, disguised as a debonair nobleman. The original film was remade in 1998 as Meet Joe Black, starring Brad Pitt and Anthony Hopkins.