Alfons Haider

Peter Steiner

From the very beginning of Alfons Haider’s impressive career as an actor, singer, TV host and cabaret artist, the contact and direct interaction with his audience has always been his greatest concern.

After training in Vienna (The Conservatory of Vienna) and Los Angeles (Lee Strasberg Institute), he soon built a career in the most prestigious theatres. He appeared in international TV series, movies and TV productions as well as hosting shows for the ORF (the Austrian Broadcasting Corporation), which subsequently became his second professional foothold. His primary motivation is to entertain his audience, whether they’re in the theatre or in front of their TVs, which spurs him on to undertake ever new and challenging projects.

Since his debut in 1975 at the Theater der Jugend (Vienna’s Youth Theatre), Alfons has slipped into the roles of princes, lovers and kings in over more than 80 theatre productions. He played some of these parts many times over the years: The emperor Franz Joseph in Sissy, the King of Siam in The King and I and Willi Forst in Bel Ami as well as the prince of Denmark in Hamlet, Daniel Kaffee in A Few Good Men, the ‘rare bird’ Zaza in La Cage aux Folles and the reckless director Zach in the Broadway production of A Chorus Line. He also enjoys performing in more intimate productions, such as Gabriel Barylli’s Butterbrot, seen recently at the Wiener Kammerspiele.

Alfons landed his first movie role in Himmel, Scheich und Wolkenbruch, followed by Happy Weekend, a German-US co-production. His major TV productions include Ringstrassenpalais (Count Artenberg), plus several appearances in Tatort, Schloss am Woerthersee and Dolce Vita. He proved his versatility when he played the controversial politician Vysloczil in the TV series Kaisermuehlenblues and appeared in the impromptu TV series Die liebe Familie. Three international TV series, La lumière des justes, Tourbillons and Riviera complete the range of highlights of his career as a TV actor.

In 1989, Alfons ventured into a new field in his career: Chat-shows and, later on, live shows became his second passion. He soon emerged as Austria’s number one television personality and hosted over a thousand shows, such as “Licht ins Dunkel”, “Lifeball”, “Musical! Die Show”, “Dancing Stars” and “Starnacht am Woerthersee and in the Wachau”. Since 1995 he has presented the most prestigious Austrian ball – the Vienna Opera Ball – which is followed live on TV by millions of viewers.

He has also more recently become one of Austria’s most renowned cabaret stars, playing stages from Vienna to Los Angeles (Friars Club) and New York (Carnegie Hall). Since 1995, it’s in these musical revues full of subtle social criticism, parodies and irony where he has found his personal place within the Austrian cabaret scene.
This production of Chickenshit finally brings Alfons back to Vienna’s English Theatre’s stage after his memorable performance in Butterflies Are Free in 1990.