Transcarpathia in the Spotlight of ‘Without Borders’ Dance Festival

Hungary Today 2023.10.05.

With a three-day festival, the House of Traditions celebrates the power of art to unite communities across borders, writes Magyar Nemzet. The focus of this year’s program series will be on Transcarpathia (former part of Hungary, now Ukraine) between October 13-15.

The main thrust of the Without Borders Capital of Dance (Határtalan táncfőváros) series of events from October 13-15 continues to provide a platform for Hungarian professional folk dance companies from beyond the borders to showcase their emerging values and provide space for innovative endeavors. This year’s event will focus on Transcarpathia.

Fact

The home of the program, the House of Traditions, is a privileged national institution whose aim is to transmit the traditional (peasant, folk) culture of the Carpathian Basin to the public culture of the time, to present folk tradition as a viable literacy factor, as valid knowledge in public culture, entertainment, and education.

On Friday, the story of Sári Fedák, a native of Berehove (Beregszász, western Ukraine, near the Hungarian border), and the glorious era of Hungarian theater will be brought to life by Nelli Szűcs.

The celebrated actress of the first half of the 20th century was sentenced to prison by the regime after World War II and was no longer allowed to perform on stage.

The central theme of the production is emigration and love for the homeland.

Sári Fedák was (1879-1955) was a Hungarian actress and singer, one of the best known prima donnas of her time. Photo via Wikipedia

The Harghita National Szekler Folk Ensemble’s show is based on the cult of Virgin Mary, playing a prominent role in Hungarian folk beliefs. The performance illustrates the inherited forms of the veneration of the Blessed Virgin Mary through the forms of circle dances of cultic origin, archaic folk prayers, folk songs, the customs of childbirth, birth, and the wedding ceremony of brides.

On Saturday, the Hungarian State Folk Ensemble and its orchestra will give a concert with folk musicians from Transcarpathia who fled to Hungary, and the ensemble will also stage its highly successful performance about the region of Transcarpathia.

In the framework of the Petőfi commemorative year, the spirit of the young poet-genius will also be brought to life through dance theater and his poems, a performance by the Udvarhely Folk Dance Workshop.

Fact

The Sándor Petőfi commemorative year that started on September 1 last year. The government is providing HUF 9 billion (EUR 23.3 million) to support bicentenary programs, rural museums, and the development of literary memorial houses and memorial sites. The Petőfi Literary Museum in Budapest has launched the Petőfi Bus, a traveling exhibition that visits more than 200 towns and villages in Hungary and abroad, and from January, a new permanent exhibition is open to visitors, entitled To Be a Poet or not to Be. Furthermore, this year, there are several productions presented on the life and work of the young poet.

The three-day Without Borders Dance Capital festival will thus open up a wide horizon: folk music, folk dance, theater, and concerts will all be on the program.

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Via Magyar Nemzet, Featured image via Facebook/Hagyományok Háza