PRESENTATION OF THE FOLDEN JOHANN STRAUSS AWARD 2015
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Otto Schenk
Media excitement was enormous, when Otto Schenk, a renowned actor and stage director, was given the Golden Johann Strauss Award on 5th October 2015. He was the first actor who had earned the accolade, the conductor Leopold Großmann and the opera singer Renate Holm were his predecessors.
At 7 pm Otto Schenk arrived in a white stretch limousine in front of the Marchfelderhof Restaurant in Deutsch-Wagram, accompanied by his wife, Renee Schenk, and the opera singer Renate Holm. He was welcomed by the local band and a great number of friends and colleagues came to congratulate him, among them Aric Brauer, Lotte Ledl, Senta Wengraf, Edith Leyrer and Bruno Thost.
Prof. Peter Widholz , President of the Johann Strauss Society of Vienna, held the keynote speech. He pointed out that Otto Schenk, who is greatly admired for his excellent theatre productions, has aways staged operettas with the same enthusiasm and diligence as operas and plays. He expressed explicit praise for Otto Schenk’s TV production of the „Fledermaus“ in 1972, because it is ideally matched to the music of Johann Strauss. As the crowning conclusion of his speech, the laudator sang the lagoon waltz from „ Eine Nacht in Venedig“, the lyrics of which he had rewritten and adapted to Otto Schenk.
Also this year 93-year-old Hedwig Aigner-Strauss, head of the Strauss family descentants, came to hand over the Golden Johann Strauss Award to Otto Schenk, who,deeply moved and extremely grateful,spontaneously kissed the fragile old lady on the forehead. His acceptance speech revealed his modesty and humility, which becomes obvious in the way he stages his theatre productions.
Christian Langer, the chef of the Marchfelderhof Restaurant, created a seven-course meal drawing inspiration from the works of the waltz king Johann Strauss.
Between the courses of the meal Anita Tauber and Florian Resetarits, both students of opera singer Renate Holm, presented various songs, accompanied by Fritz Brucker on the piano. The artistic performances were concluded by the ballet company of Milan Hatala with a choreographic presentation of the „Kaiserwalzer“ by Johann Strauss.
