Ruby ruffles feathers at Opera Ball
Source: Agencies |
March 4, 2011, Friday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
VIENNA'S glitzy Opera Ball blossomed into a swirl of elegant waltzing couples last night, and one famous guest was expected to be watching from the sidelines.
"I can't waltz," says Ruby - a.k.a. Karima el-Mahroug. Pausing for effect, the Moroccan teen at the center of the scandal plaguing Italian Premier Silvio Berlusconi smiles and adds: "I can only belly dance."
For centuries, Vienna's high society has waltzed blissfully through wars, recessions and firebomb-throwing anarchists opposed to the moneyed decadence they think such events represent. But it has never had to deal with an 18-year-old dancer said to have been paid by Berlusconi for sex while she was still underage - and the ripples caused by her presence are relegating Libya's revolution and other top news events to the back pages of Austria's newspapers.
Vienna's top priest has been drawn into the fray, citing scripture in favor of her attendance. The ball's organizer has threatened to ban Richard Lugner, the quirky 78-year old millionaire who invited her. State television's program head has ordered reporters covering the ball to avoid mentioning her at all costs, resulting in protests from TV employees who see her as the event's biggest news.
In typical reporting, this week's front cover of News, one of Austria's most widely read magazines, is dominated by a montage of Lugner in tails and top hat, his arm around a scantily clad Ruby and the headline "Scandal Surrounds the Opera Ball."
Lugner doesn't understand the fuss. "If Berlusconi liked her, she's good enough for the Opera Ball," he told News.
But for ball organizer Desiree Treichl-Struegh, she is a "prostitute involved in ongoing legal proceedings against Berlusconi" - and as such, persona non-grata.
She says Lugner will not be given an opera box next year.
As for Ruby? "It's certainly going to be a wonderful experience for me and I'm very grateful to get to go," she said.
"I can't waltz," says Ruby - a.k.a. Karima el-Mahroug. Pausing for effect, the Moroccan teen at the center of the scandal plaguing Italian Premier Silvio Berlusconi smiles and adds: "I can only belly dance."
For centuries, Vienna's high society has waltzed blissfully through wars, recessions and firebomb-throwing anarchists opposed to the moneyed decadence they think such events represent. But it has never had to deal with an 18-year-old dancer said to have been paid by Berlusconi for sex while she was still underage - and the ripples caused by her presence are relegating Libya's revolution and other top news events to the back pages of Austria's newspapers.
Vienna's top priest has been drawn into the fray, citing scripture in favor of her attendance. The ball's organizer has threatened to ban Richard Lugner, the quirky 78-year old millionaire who invited her. State television's program head has ordered reporters covering the ball to avoid mentioning her at all costs, resulting in protests from TV employees who see her as the event's biggest news.
In typical reporting, this week's front cover of News, one of Austria's most widely read magazines, is dominated by a montage of Lugner in tails and top hat, his arm around a scantily clad Ruby and the headline "Scandal Surrounds the Opera Ball."
Lugner doesn't understand the fuss. "If Berlusconi liked her, she's good enough for the Opera Ball," he told News.
But for ball organizer Desiree Treichl-Struegh, she is a "prostitute involved in ongoing legal proceedings against Berlusconi" - and as such, persona non-grata.
She says Lugner will not be given an opera box next year.
As for Ruby? "It's certainly going to be a wonderful experience for me and I'm very grateful to get to go," she said.
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