Vienna (OTS) – The carnival on ORF TV has a lot to offer: from the cabaret with Monika Gruber and “Willkommen Fasching” with Stermann and Grissemann on ORF 1 to “Narrisch guat” with the highlights of local carnival guilds to the “Villacher Fasching” on ORF 2 is for everyone Something (humorous) taste there. OKIDOKI and ORF-KIDS offer everything about carnival for the youngest audience and ORF III presents cultural events with, among other things, “Fledermaus” and lots of cabaret with Michael Niavarani and much more – and if you need even more to laugh, you get the long carnival night of Austro humor as an addition.
First-class cabaret: The carnival highlights on ORF 1
In her program “Too true to be beautiful” on Sunday, February 11, 2024, at 8:15 p.m. on ORF 1, Monika Gruber mercilessly puts her finger in the wounds of our bleak everyday life. Daily television, the difference between men and women and getting older are just some of the inexhaustible sources from which the cabaret artist draws. Afterwards, at 9:50 p.m., Christoph Grissemann and Dirk Stermann, speakers of the humorous documentary “Welcome Fasching!”, go to the large ORF archive and show the most worth seeing TV reports about the carnival. In a colorful foray across Austria, they report on local customs and practical jokes, delicious donuts and crazy costumes. They show historical archive footage of the “Sauschädelstehlen” in Styria as well as the “Wampelerreiten” in Tyrol and greet Carinthia with a “Lei, Lei!” In Vienna, society likes to celebrate carnival in ball gowns, but the following applies in the city and in the country: let the fools go! On Rose Monday, February 12th, there will be a reunion with “We are Emperor – Carnival” at 10 p.m.: His Majesty Robert Heinrich I and Obersthofmeister Seyffenstein welcome singer Virginia Ernst, star violinist David Garrett, and the Ö3 podcast duo Gabi Hiller and Philipp Hansa and the band “All Respect”.
“Villacher Fasching” and Co.: Traditional carnival highlights on ORF 2
For three decades, audience favorites and actors from the local carnival guilds have been presenting their gags and insults on the show “Narrisch guat”. On Saturday, February 10th, at 8:15 p.m., Luis from South Tyrol, the Althofen carnival guild and the Feistritzer carnival council will light their punchline fireworks on ORF 2. The ORF 2 “matinee” on Sunday, February 11th is dedicated to this, among other things “Carnival in Vienna” (9:05 a.m.): Judith Doppler’s documentary tells the eventful history of the foolish time, which in the federal capital is not only associated with a strong ball season. At the end of the ORF cultural morning, an edition of the series “Icons of Austria” (10.45 a.m.) can be seen, in which “Puss and Punch” is the focus.
“The Steirerland in the Narreng’wand” will be shown on Shrove Tuesday, February 13th, at 1:20 p.m. during the live broadcast of the traditional Graz carnival parade, which is being celebrated for the 50th time this year. To mark this anniversary, the parade will take place on an extended route from the Graz Opera to the town hall. The motto this year is “Folscher 50s”. At 8:15 p.m. the highlight of the foolish time will be on the ORF 2 program with the 69th “Villacher Carnival”, when the audience favorites from the Draustadt under the reign of Prince Fidelius LXIX. and your loveliness Princess Anna II will make carnival hearts beat faster. A mixture of tried and tested and new program items bring punchlines, shows and practical jokes to the Lei-Lei stage and ensure an atmospheric end to the carnival.
These and other events are also the subject of the ORF 2 morning and afternoon magazines as well as the “Seitenblicken”, which attend numerous balls and carnival events.
Carnival for the youngest: Highlights in the OKIDOKI children’s program on ORF 1 and on ORF KIDS
Kater Kurt and Christoph Hirschler will be presenting their self-made “costume transformer box” with which you can dress up in seconds at “Hello OKIDOKI” on Saturday, February 10th and Sunday, February 11th, starting at 8 a.m. on ORF 1 How to give sweet chocolate kisses a “disguise” and have a big carnival party. At the beginning of the ball season, Christina Karnicnik also shows what the right ball clothing looks like. On Monday, February 12th, there will be “Kasperl & Leopold:” on ORF 1 at 7:05 a.m.
“The magic donuts” are turbulent when the evil magician Sauerbein casts a spell on the carnival donuts. At 11.50 a.m., the little fools of the Draustadt will present a colorful program in “Mini Lei Lei 2024” at the 58th children’s carnival in the Congress Center Villach. The child prince couple, Prince Gaudelius LVIII, Laurenz-Frederik Zavodnik, and their loveliness, Princess Marie I, Marie Schwab, rule the little nation of fools under the well-known Villach motto: “Lei Lei”! Lively dance performances and funny speaking numbers ensure the best atmosphere.
“Mini Lei Lei 2024” can also be seen in advance on ORF KIDS: on Sunday, February 4th, at 9:00 a.m., on Saturday, February 10th, at 12:00 p.m. and on Shrove Tuesday, February 13th, at 3:00 p.m Clock. “MINI Special” on Saturday, February 10th at 5:55 p.m. on ORF KIDS will also address the questions: Why do we even dress up during carnival? Where did disguise originate and why do we still like to slip into other roles today? Together with a historian, the costume collection of the Austrian theaters will be rummaged through in search of the secrets of carnival. “Mini Lei Lei 2024” and “MINI Spezial” will also be available on demand at kids.ORF.at from their (first) broadcast.
Humorous and colorful: Carnival on ORF III
ORF III also celebrates carnival in a humorous and colorful way. On Sunday, February 11th, “erlebnis Bühne” presents Johann Strauss’ lively cult operetta “Die Fledermaus” in the current production of the Linz Music Theater. With opulent costumes, stirring compositions and ironic, astute lyrics, the masterpiece guarantees an entertaining evening of operetta.
On Rose Monday, February 12th, ORF III will show six episodes of “Humor Knows No Limits” from 1 p.m.: Felix Dvorak presents sketches from the archive, including Karl Farkas, Maxi Böhm, Ossy Kolmann and Otto Schenk. A humorous three-part “ORF III Theme Monday” is on the program from 8:15 p.m.: In “Homo Niavaranicus – The Best of the Last 55 Years,” star cabaret artist Michael Niavarani first fools his way through the evening together with ORF III presenter Peter Fässlacher. Afterwards, the audience favorite delivers entertaining punch lines and funny sayings in “Niavarani’s Fasching Express” (9:05 p.m.) together with Monika Gruber, Otto Schenk and Andreas Steppan. You can also see excerpts from the theater comedies “Romeo and Juliet” and “Richard III.” Finally, Michael Niavarani and Viktor Gernot can be seen in a best of “VODKA ORANGE” (9:55 p.m.).
There will be even more Niavarani and things to make you laugh on Shrove Tuesday, February 13th: from 1:40 p.m., five editions of the stand-up comedy “Who Laughs Wins,” presented by Michael Niavarani and Ossy Kolmann, are on the program. At 8:15 p.m. ORF III starts a long carnival night of Austro humor: With Alex Kristans “Highlights from the first three programs,” “Klaus Eckel – The Best Moments” (9:15 p.m.), “Best of Karl Farkas” (10:05 p.m.) , the two-part program “Farkas, Waldbrunn & Co” (10:35 p.m. and 11:10 p.m.) with the most unforgettable moments of the legendary cabaret duo as well as top-class colleagues and finally three editions of “Best of Simpl” with “Balances from the Coffee House” (11:40 p.m.), “Balances of Love” (12:30 a.m.) and “Balances in Professional Life” (1:25 a.m.).
The programs in the program focus will be available via live stream on the ORF TVthek. On ORF ON and in the ORF-TVthek (app and web) there are also separate lanes with video-on-demand offers relating to carnival on TV, from “Villacher Fasching” to “Narrisch guat” (if there are corresponding license rights available).