Tradition With A Twist

Shortly before the end of Carnival, the guests of the Ball of Legal Professionals were treated to a glittering ball night and a surprise from Hollywood!

Right at the entrance in the foyer there was a logo wall flanked by two Porsche cars, which prompted the first “wow” remarks from the ball guests.

The Ball of Legal Professionals, until then a rather conservative ball, was thoroughly modernised under the motto “Tradition With A Twist”, organized by a new association presidium supported by Marika Lichter, and enchanted the guests with a new music program, opulent floral decoration and appealing lighting design.

The President of the Juristenverband, RA Dr. Alexander T. Scheuwimmer, newly elected that Friday, welcomed the guests together with his Vice-President Mag. Reinhard Hohenegger, and the excitement was great when the grand opening ceremony began in the magnificent Festsaal. Under the direction of Prof. Dipl.-Kfm. Thomas Schäfer-Elmayer, the members of the opening committee walked into the hall. Accompanied by the Ziehrer Hofball Orchester and the fanfares, the procession of the guests of honor then began, and they took their seats on and in front of the stage. Maria Nazarova of the Vienna State Opera impressed with her wonderful coloratura soprano and Olympia’s aria from Offenbach’s “The Tales of Hoffmann”, the Europa Ballett brought a spirited Can Can to the floor, and finally Thomas Schäfer-Elmayer celebrated his 30 years of collaboration with the Juristenverband with a choreography to the Song Contest hit “Congratulations” by Cliff Richard from 1968.

The speeches by the new President of the Juristenverband and by the Minister of Justice were acclaimed, and Silvia Schneider, Master of Laws, hosted both the procession of the guests and the rest of the evening as eloquently and skilfully as ever. “Alles Walzer” brought the dancers onto the floor of the Festsaal, which filled up rapidly.

All of this was topped only by the surprise appearance of Hollywood star Nicolas Cage, who had been recommended the Ball of Legal Professionals at the Hotel Sacher as a traditional ball with good entertainment. When the ball organization learned who would be honoring the ball, it rearranged the original guest list and seated the charming actor and his enchanting companion in the finest Loge in the house. He was more than taken with it, as it was his first ball ever, and kept saying: “Oh, I’m learning culture.”

The ball guests danced and enjoyed themselves splendidly! The Porsche simulator was particularly popular; the gaming table of Casinos Austria was also busy, and the Porsche/Schärf coffee bar served delicious espressos and cappuccinos.

The bands were in top form and the side halls were well attended. The TOPKAPI styling lounge was the place to go for a freshen-up, and there was plenty to do in the tailoring workshop of Kleiderverleih Rottenberg as well.

The give-away bags were much in demand too, containing vouchers for the online platform of LINDE Verlag, sponsored by them and printed by Jentzsch, doughnuts from Felber sponsored by LexisNexis Verlag, small bottles of sparkling wine from Kattus and vouchers from Juwelier Forstinger.

All in all a wonderful celebration that still had dancers at 5 a.m. as it drew to a close. No flowers left, though – the beautiful green orchids and red amaryllis had been picked down to the last stem. But that is exactly how it should be at a successful ball!

“I was a little nervous about giving a speech in front of such a large audience on the very first day after my election, but I am delighted with the great success of our ball, which really went perfectly and smoothly,” said the President of the Juristenverband with relief.

From the guest list:

From politics: Minister Dr. Josef Moser and his wife Dr. Daniela Moser, Félix Braz, Deputy Prime Minister of Luxembourg, Member of the European Parliament Dr. Othmar Karas, City Councillor for Finance Peter Hanke, Mag. Beate Meinl-Reisinger, parliamentary group leader of NEOS, Rudolf Hundstorfer, former State Secretary Christine Marek, and Mag.a Michaela Steinacker, chair of the Justice Committee in Parliament, along with numerous guests from the Austrian and international judiciary. The line-up of artists was crowned by the visit of Hollywood star Nicolas Cage; Barbara Wussow and Albert Fortell, cultural manager Daniel Serafin, Nina and Felix Adlon, Martin Leutgeb and dance partner Manuela Stöckl and many more also took to the dance floor.