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VIENNA, June 9 – The Austrian capital, Vienna, will say goodbye to the iconic Life Ball AIDS fundraising that took place yesterday as its extravagant costumes and celebrities invade the town hall for the last time.
Launched by former makeup artist Gery Keszler, among others, the ball has raised about 30 million euros (140.7 million RM) for anti – AIDS causes in Austria and Belgium. foreign since its first edition in 1993, announced the organizers.
Keszler announced last month that the edition of this year's ball would be the last because of a lack of funding.
This year's motto is "United in Diversity", with costumes inspired by the world of magic and circus, and the square in front of City Hall transformed into a fairground.
Conchita Wurst, Austrian Eurovision winner and drag star, will be part of the ring masters of the evening. The opening ceremony will begin at 21:30.
Actresses Lindsay Lohan, Katie Holmes and Kelly Osbourne will be among the stars of the red carpet.
In line with the traditional balls of Vienna, there will be 200 "beginners", but in line with the commitment to diversity, the age limit was raised to 75 years.
Keszler said on Friday that he considered the event of this year as "somehow a last testament".
"It brings me back to the first Life Ball and causes a lot of emotion," he told the daily. Die Presse.
Funding concerns
Anchored in the activism of the LGBT community in Vienna, the Life Ball has become one of the largest AIDS charity events in the world over the last three decades, attracting up to 45,000 guests and spectators a year.
Regular tickets cost € 180, but tickets with red carpet and VIP access can go up to € 550 and € 990.
The Life Ball has also become a kind of jet-stream, with Elton John, Naomi Campbell and Vivienne Westwood, some of the famous names he has attended over the years.
Organizers say the bullet is no longer viable because paradoxically, advances in treatment and prognosis for people living with HIV and AIDS have reduced the number of donors willing to contribute to such causes .
Some of those who benefited from the funds raised by the ball in the past have expressed their concerns about the impact of its end.
The Hilfe Wien Aids Association said it feared losing up to € 200,000 a year, which it uses to help HIV-positive patients gain access to treatment.
However, the authorities of the city of Vienna have not ruled out a possible resumption of Life Ball in the future, possibly with different organizers.
This year's ball coincides with the 17-day EuroPride festival taking place in Vienna this year, which culminated in a huge Rainbow parade in the city center on June 15th.
AIDS, or Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome, is the most advanced stage of infection with the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), which targets the immune system.
The World Health Organization estimated that about 36.9 million people were living with HIV by the end of 2017, with 1.8 million people newly infected that year and 940,000 related deaths. to HIV. – AFP-Relaxnews
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