Vilnius 1, Linz 0 – Author Laurynas Katkus Puts Vilnius in the Lead

Press Release
24 February 2009

For Messrs. Juhann and Jod, the fact that there are simultaneously two capitals of culture—Linz and Vilnius—is an utterly intolerable state of affairs! In response, they’ve developed a play-off format loosely based on TV casting shows that will determine over the course of five evenings which city is the real 2009 Capital of Culture and which one has to content itself with second fiddle.

The unofficial kick-off of this Linz vs. Vilnius duel was a World Cup football qualifying match last September that pitted Austria against Lithuania. In the wake of the Alpine Republic’s painful setback on the pitch, author Franzobel was psyched up to get Austria back even last Monday night (February 23, 2009) in Linz’s Wissensturm, but despite his spirited effort with a very witty text about the holes in the Linzeraugen pastries this city is so famous for, he came up just a wee bit short. Lithuanian author Laurynas Katkus scored big with a highly concentrated study about his brief stay in Linz, a city that was utterly foreign to him and in which he felt like an inmate of an institution for sufferers of “graphomania.” Messrs. Juhann and Jod moderated the evening’s proceeding in typically charming fashion; their good-time banter provided just the right comic relief during tense balloting that would otherwise have been too nerve-wracking to bear! The Linz audience displayed admirable objectivity, eschewing narrow-minded boosterism and voting for the contribution from Lithuania (though playing the role of good-mannered host just might have played a role). In any case, the bottom line is that the pressure will definitely be on Linz at the next event on Wednesday, March 4 in the library of the Catholic Theological University, where Cornelius Hell (LIT) and Edmund Brandner (AUT) will battle it out in a comparison of two episodes from the history of the two countries. Once again, it will be up to audience members to determine the winner. Then, on March 13, Franzobel will get an opportunity to make up for his defeat, though he’ll actually be stepping into the ring on behalf of Lithuania on the music-themed evening. The burning question: will Linzers ever summon enough gumption to get behind the home team?

Dates & Times:
HISTORY / BIBLE PATH (AUT) VS. BOOK SMUGGELING (LIT)
March 4, 2009, 8 PM /
Library of the Catholic Theological Private University Linz

MUSIC / HANS-GEORG GUTTERNIGG (AUT) VS. FRANZOBEL (LIT)
March 13, 2009, 8 PM /
Volkshaus Dornach-Auhof

LANGUAGE / GERMAN (AUT) VS. LITHUANIAN (LIT)
March 18, 2009, 8 PM /
Volkshaus Franckviertel

CUISINE / LINZ AND VILNIUS
GRAND FINALE
April 2, 2009, 8 PM /
Wissensturm