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White Tie and a Waltz in New York City:
Viennese Opera Ball Honors the
Bicentenary of the Birth of
Johann Strauss II
69th Year of the Iconic Celebration
Celebrated Tradition
the Enduring Works of Johann Strauss II
In a celebration of culture, tradition,
and timeless music, the 69th Annual
Viennese Opera Ball returned to
Cipriani 42nd Street, for one of the
most spectacular evenings in New York’s
social calendar. This year’s gala held
resonance, commemorating the 200th
Anniversary of the birth of Johann
Strauss II, the “Waltz King”.
Co-Chaired by Jean Shafiroff and
Denise Rich, this year’s Ball
benefited Gabrielle’s Angel Foundation
for Cancer Research, and the music
therapy at Memorial Sloan Kettering
Cancer Center, continuing the event’s
legacy of supporting charitable causes
through the arts.
The evening opened with the presentation
of debutantes and their escorts
choreographed by Sandra Stockmayer
from Svabek Dance School Vienna,
followed by a ballet performance
featuring Christine Shevchenko,
Principal Dancer with the American
Ballet Theatre, joined by young dancers
from the Rock School of Dance and
members of the Youth America Grand Prix
(YAGP), with the support of the Ballet
Support Foundation. A highlight of the
evening were the breathtaking
performances by opera stars María
Barakova, two-time Grammy Award
winner J’Nai Bridges, Adam Smith,
Mikayla Sager, Daniel Berryman, Aigul
Akhmetshina, Maritina Tampakopoulos, and
Johanna Will. Guests enjoyed a
Viennese-inspired dinner and fine
Austrian wines, followed by dancing to
Waltzer by the Viennese Opera Ball
Orchestra led by Maestro Rainer
Sulzgruber, the traditional midnight
Quadrille and an after party with DJ
and Austrian snacks.
Notable attendees included: Denise
Rich, Jean Shafiroff, Silvia Frieser,
Sabine Riglos (Honoree and Board
member), Stefan Ottrubay (Chairman of
the Board, Esterhazy Foundation), Petra
Schneebauer (Austrian Ambassador to the
United States), Thomas Schlesinger
(Austrian Consul-General) and spouse
Susanne Keppler-Schlesinger (Austrian
Cultural Forum NY), Ernst Woller
(President of the Vienna Provincial
Parliament), Peter Hanke (Federal
Minister for Innovation, Mobility and
Infrastructure of the Republic of
Austria), Dominik Nepp (Member of the
City Council of Vienna), Klaus Panholzer
(Schloss Schonbrunn), Austrian painter
Pablo Meier-Schomburg and Camillo
Stepanek, Austrian fashion designer
Carolin Sinemus (Madl, Salzburg), Julia
Haart, Michael Spinks, Maribel
Lieberman, TV personality Star Jones,
Elizabeth Segerstrom, William Cavendish
and Liliana Cavendish, Rebecca Seawright,
David Hochberg, Mario-Max Schaumburg-Lippe,
Lulu Sezercan Dalkanat
and Lola Abigail Koch.
About the Viennese Opera Ball:
Since 1955, the Viennese Opera Ball in
New York has been a representative of
Vienna’s cultural legacy, elegance, and
glamour in the Big Apple. The Ball
operates as a cultural platform and
builds bridges to connect present day
New York City with 19th Century Vienna,
and people of varying heritages,
continents, and generations, to bring
traditional glamour to the city that
never sleeps.
For more information, please visit:
www.vienneseoperaball.com
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