On the programme of SzínHázTömb ? ?TheatreBlock? in English ? are theatre performances, exhibitions, concerts and talks.
?We believe that dialogue between people and dialogue between different cultures will help us understand each other and avoid misunderstandings,? undersecretary in charge of international relations at the Ministry of Education and Culture Katalin Bogyay said at the opening of the festival.
Hungary will continue to nurture the cultural bonds with its neighbours. In January, the cultural ministers of the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia will meet in Hungary, Bogyay said. A Polish film festival will be held too.
Új Színház director István Márta said his theatre believes that culture can create a bridge between all peoples of the world. Brutality and violence has no place in culture, he added. He said there were no borders in culture, in spite of different languages and styles. Ideas about the world and life are the same.
SzínHázTömb opened on Wednesday with a performance of ?Matka? (Mother), in Slovakian, by Slovakia?s Vertigo Theatre and Hungary?s Slovak Theatre. The day also featured screenings of short films by Hungarian and Slovakian film academy students as well as a concert by the Free Style Chamber Orchestra.
On Thursday, the Jókai Theatre from the city of Komárom, near Hungary?s border with Slovakia, will perform ?Fall Dream?, by John Fosse, in Hungarian. Peter Lipa, one of Slovakia?s best-known Jazz musicians, will also perform.
On the festival?s final day, A-HA, a theatre based in Bratislava, will perform ?PraFaust? (ProtoFaust), in Slovakian. Hungary?s Slovak Theatre will perform a musical comedy, in Hungarian. Also on the programme will be readings from contemporary Slovakian plays and a concert by Hungary?s Kistehén Tánczenekar.
The Új Színház?s contribution to the programme will be a performance of ?Marat/Sade? directed by Romania?s Victor Ioan Frunza. The costume designer for the production, Adriana Grand, will display her work in the Új Színház?s foyer, together with other state and costume designs by members of theatre troupes performing at the festival.
