Cabaret Award 2026: Groebner, Scheid, Buchmasser

Groebner has been performing on the cabaret stage for more than three decades. With his current program, the jury considers him to have reached the peak of his work: in recent years he has "zur Meisterschaft aufgelaufen, komplexe zeitgeschichtliche und gesellschaftliche Ärgernisse ebenso böse wie witzig auf den Punkt zu bringen", according to the citation.

The jury sees in "Ich bin das Volk!", which according to the program announcement will premiere on July 8, a "famose moderne Variante des ‚Herrn Karl'". In the press release, Groebner's program is described as "Der Rundumschlag eines gescheiterten Möchtegern-Autokraten", who "einem – unter schmerzhaftem Lachen – die Mechanismen und Facetten des erstarkenden Alltagsfaschismus verständlich" makes.

Program Award for David Scheid

This is not the first main award for the Vienna native: Groebner was already honored with the Austrian Cabaret Award in 2013. The jury also points to the special stage figure that Groebner embodies in his new program – a "Regierungsprogramm seiner Severinität in Groebner Verfassung" can be experienced there.

The Program Award goes to David Scheid for his fourth solo program "The Kabarettist". Scheid, who has also been successful with his artistic character "Dave" on ORF and as a film actor in "Des Teufels Bad", combines according to the jury "politisches Kabarett, Stand-up, Rap, DJing, Polit-Satire und parodistisches Schauspiel" and impresses with "smarte 360 Grad-Unterhaltung mit deepem Kern".

The Promotional Award goes to the Styrian Chrissi Buchmasser, born in 1989, for her program "Zugzwang". The jury describes her as "Komikerin, die über ihre Mimik die Welt erklären kann" and praises her musical parodies on the electric guitar, which she "mit der Grandezza in die Welt hinausposaune, als würde sie die Stadien des Landes füllen" – which she "bald auch tun werde", according to the panel's prognosis.

Promotional Award for Chrissi Buchmasser

A Special Award goes to Robert Steiner and Stefan Gaugusch, known as "Ratte Rolf Rüdiger". They are honored for "ihr kontinuierliches und nachhaltiges Wirken im Bereich der humoristisch-frechen Früherziehung". The jury emphasizes that the two would "in bester Nestroy'scher Tradition […] die beiden Großkopferte gehörig goschert auf die Schaufel [nehmen] und Minderprivilegierte (Kinder) ernst und in Schutz: empathisch und solidarisch. So geht Satire".

Steiner and Gaugusch have been hosting call-in and game shows on Radio Wien for two decades and are also well known to Viennese audiences through their joint stage programs. With the Special Award, the jury honors a long-standing collaboration that has consistently devoted itself to political and social satire.

Special Award for Steiner and Gaugusch

The presentation of the Austrian Cabaret Award will take place on October 13 at the Globe Wien. Clemens Maria Schreiner will host the evening. ORF 1 will broadcast the gala on December 18. With the Main Award, the Program Award, the Promotional Award, and the Special Award, the central categories of the stage honor have been awarded.

The winners will also perform in Upper Austria during the cultural autumn. The Lachtnacht at the Stadttheater Wels is part of the program; the awarded artists will appear there on October 10. Additionally, further appearances by the honorees are planned as part of the Upper Austrian cultural autumn.

Gala at the Globe Wien and ORF Broadcast

For the Television and Online Award categories, the procedure is still ongoing: submissions are possible until July 27, and public voting will take place from August 3 to 31. The winners of these categories had not yet been determined at the time the stage awards were announced.

The Austrian Cabaret Award is one of the most important honors in the German-language cabaret scene. It has been awarded since 1991 and recognizes both established artists and newcomers. This year's jury explains its decisions in detail and emphasizes in each award category the socio-political ambition of the programs.

Television and Online Award: Voting Underway

Groebner's new award joins a long list of Austrian satirists who have received the Main Award. The parallel to "Herrn Karl", the famous Nestroy monologue that Helmut Qualtinger shaped into a biting satire on conformism in the 1960s, underscores the political ambition that the jury recognizes in Groebner's current program.

With Buchmasser and Scheid, two artists are simultaneously honored who represent different formats of modern cabaret: one as a mime-musical storyteller, the other as a multimedia hybrid artist between stage, television, and cinema. Both are considered established figures in the domestic cabaret scene.

The announcement of the winners on Friday was received with great attention by the industry. The mixture of political sharpness, artistic diversity, and the recognition of a long-standing radio duo constancy reflects the state of the Austrian cabaret landscape in 2026, according to reactions from the scene.

Overall, the 2026 jury paints a broad picture: a grand master of cabaret, an up-and-coming hybrid artist, an exceptional mime talent, and a radio satire duo that has been setting standards for 20 years. The gala in October will show how the winners present themselves on the big stage of the Globe Wien.