Saturday, 18. May 2013 - 09:05

:: Home > General News > Burgtheater star deplores chancellor's no-show

M	T	W	T	F	S	S
29	30	1	2	3	4	5
6	7	8	9	10	11	12
13	14	15	16	17	18	19
20	21	22	23	24	25	26
27	28	29	30	31	1	2

Add your event FREE

Today

Videos

GN'R: Paradise City

05. 07. 11. - 19:00

Burgtheater star deplores chancellor's no-show

Nicholas Ofczarek has hit out at Austria’s political elite.

The celebrated actor told magazine profil that the country’s leading politicians seem to have little interest in theatrical performances at the Burgtheater, the Viennese theatre where he has been engaged since 1994. The Burgtheater is considered by many to be among the best theatre houses in German-speaking Europe.

“I’ve never seen the chancellor (Social Democrat, SPÖ, Werner Faymann) or the mayor (of Vienna, the SPÖ’s Michael Häupl) at a theatre or cinema premiere. The federal president (Heinz Fischer) enjoys going to the theatre. But apart from him, you hardly see any politicians. They don’t seem to be interested,” he said.

The actor stressed that there were exceptions like former SPÖ boss Alfred Gusenbauer and ex-parliamentary president Andreas Khol of the conservative People’s Party (ÖVP).

Ofczarek pointed out that “they all seem to go to football matches – although I doubt that all of them are interested in football. But this has a different kind of public impact, of course.”

The actor – who stars as “Jedermann” in the play of the same name by Hugo von Hofmannsthal at the Salzburg Festival (Salzburger Festspiele) – also lashed out at politicians over how they reacted when Stefan Ruzowitzky (in 2008) and Christoph Waltz (in 2010) won Academy Awards.

He said: “(The reactions) were typically Austrian – like: there you go, it works, you get an Oscar despite the little money (low public subsidies). (...) Christoph Waltz was a world-class actor before he was awarded. When he won, everyone referred to him as ‘our Austrian’ Christoph Waltz as everyone called Stefan Ruzowitzky ‘our laureate.’”

Asked whether he was worried about the possibility that right-winger Heinz-Christian Strache, who heads the Freedom Party (FPÖ), could become Austria’s next chancellor, the stage and TV star said: “I’m scared indeed. But we are living in a democracy and some people apparently want to experience Strache as chancellor. He is a populist and seems to strike the right note with many voters.”

Ofczarek told profil he was convinced that it would soon become apparent that Strache will not succeed with his points of view should he come to power. “The FPÖ was already part of a government once. What went on as far as corruption is regarded only emerges now, but people seem to be oblivious to that,” he said.

“He (Strache) claims that deporting all foreigners is the solution. That he is wrong is totally obvious,” the actor – who has delivered convincing performances in classic plays as well as modern productions – added.

Austrian Times

Write your comment to this article here

Tag cloud:
Ofczarek Strache Salzburg ndash star Burgtheater Waltz politicians president rdquo theatre rsquo ldquo Ouml Ruzowitzky actor Austria Stefan Christoph chancellor

Latest News

Police raid dairy headquarters
A raid in the second largest Austrian dairy NÃ–M, which started on 15 May, was terminated yesterday (Thur) afternoon. Employees of the Federal Competition Authority (BWB) are still in the headquarters in Baden.

Austrian on trial over Aldi blackmail
The trial of a 61-year-old man from Salzburg, who blackmailed the company Aldi South, started yesterday (Wed) in Duisburg, Germany. The defendant has already admitted that he demanded 15 million Euros from the firm.

State secretary denies interfering over Baumgartner taxes
The extreme sportsman Felix Baumgartner stated that the Ministry of Finance spared him additional taxation by political intervention. The former Financial Secretary Reinhold Lopatka (Ã–VP) denies these claims.

Search for trapped after Felbertauern rockfall
The Felbertauern road in Tyrol, Western Austria, has been closed completely after rock fall last night (Mon). Rock came down on the East Tyrol side just before 2 a.m. It completely destroyed an avalanche gallery.

Delunamagma creditors to lose most of their investment
The creditors of the technology firm Delunamagma Industries GmbH from Bludesch-Gais, Vorarlberg (Western Austria) will lose the majority of their money in the bankruptcy proceedings.

SPÃ– Salzburg votes for new party leader
The current health and social state councillor Walter Steidl has been elected the new head of the Social democratic party of Salzburg yesterday (Mon).

SPÃ– see devastating loss after weekend election
The SPÃ– lost a huge amoung of votes in the Salzburg state election yesterday (Sun). The party of Governor Gabi Burgstaller only achieved 23.81%, which is a loss of 15.58% compared to 2009. Even though the Ã–VP lost more than seven percent, they came first. The Green Party is a winner of this election.

VAT fraudster arrested in Germany
The police of Flachgau, state of Salzburg, arrested a presumed fraudster from Germany. The 35-year-old is suspected of having committed tax evasion as the head of a European-wide operating union.

Finance scandal reason for early election
The financial scandal in Salzburg has been hotly debated since last December. Many people lost their trust in the government and this has led to early elections on 5 May.

TV show reveals the dark side to energy drink Red Bull
A documentary of the "Erstes Deutsches Fernsehen" (ARD), which was shown on TV on Monday night, deals with the dark side of the company Red Bull. It is about risky spectacles with a deadly end.

The most popular stories –
last 7 days

	Search for trapped after Felbertauern rockfall
	State secretary denies interfering over Baumgartner taxes
	Austrian on trial over Aldi blackmail
	Police raid dairy headquarters