Reichenau and Lower Austria theatre earn four Nestroy nominations

The Reichenau Festival and the Lower Austria State Theatre have each received two nominations for this year’s Nestroy Awards, ORF reports. The awards will be presented at Vienna’s Volkstheater on November 22 for the 27th time.

The Reichenau Festival’s production of Leo Tolstoy’s “War and Peace” is nominated for Best Production in the Federal States. Tim Werth is also nominated for Best Actor for his portrayal of Prince Andrei Bolkonsky. Philipp Hauß directed the production.

The Lower Austria State Theatre has nominations for two productions from the past season. Caroline Baas is nominated for Best Supporting Actress for playing Masha in Anton Chekhov’s “The Seagull,” directed by Max Lindemann. The jury praised her restrained performance, saying her character’s grief showed in her eyes and posture without her pushing herself to the foreground.

Playwright paula lew van well is nominated in the Best Newcomer category, which covers costume, direction, composition and sound, and play, for “der mund wenn er kippt ist ein teich.” The debut play was developed through the state’s Peter Turrini playwright scholarship and directed by Anne Bader. The jury highlighted its combination of a queer coming-of-age story and poetic descriptions of nature. It explores friendship, first love, grief and memory against the backdrop of a lake where a girl drowned.

Lower Austria State Theatre artistic director Patricia Nickel-Dönicke said the nominations recognised Baas’s range and the importance of supporting young playwrights. Reichenau artistic director Maria Happel said the nominations acknowledged the work of the entire ensemble and festival.