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19. 03. 10. - 12:00

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19. 03. 10. - 12:00

Holender gets Vienna gong

Romanian Times

Outgoing State Opera director Ioan Holender received the Golden Honorary Medal of the City of Vienna yesterday (Thurs).

Nikolaus Bachler, head of the Bavarian State Opera and former Burgtheater Vienna director, praised the Romanian for having been outspoken on all kinds of topics throughout the 18 years he headed the opera, according to Austrian Times.

Holender, 74, told his successor Dominique Meyer: "Be clever and wise and don’t believe all the good things about this city you heard today."

The Frenchman will take over as State Opera director later this year.

It emerged recently that Holender, who moved to Vienna at the age of 24, will host his own talk show on private broadcaster ATV. Company bosses said there would be 12 editions of "Termin bei Holender" (Appointment with Holender) a year, with the first one airing on 29 March.

Holender has caused controversy over the years by opposing the media hype around the Opera Ball. He tried to keep the number of days the opera house needed to stop performing because of the event as few as possible, and criticised TV coverage of the high society get-together.

"It’s a mystery to me why so many people watch it [national broadcaster ORF’s coverage] as it lasts hours and is boring," he said ahead of this year’s ball which was attended by British TV starlet Katie Price, German talent show juror Dieter Bohlen and Catherine Ashton, the European Union’s (EU) new High Representative.

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