Magdolna Závogyán: Hungary is a festival superpower

By: Trademagazin Date: 2023. 06. 30. 10:04

Hungary is a festival superpower, the festivals bear witness to the fact that culture lives with us, it can be seen, heard and felt – said the state secretary responsible for culture of the Ministry of Culture and Innovation on Friday at the opening ceremony of the 60th season of the 23rd Körös-völgyi Sokadalom and the Gyula Castle Theater in Gyula.

Magdolna Závogyán pointed out that the word festival means celebration, the double festival in Gyula “reveals authentic values in several layers, introduces us to the incomparably rich treasures of Békés County, presents the best of the country’s folk and performing arts, and evokes the universal heritage of the Carpathian homeland”. .

He added that the two festivals in Gyula are “long-ago, intertwined events, outstanding jewels of our cultural life”. According to the State Secretary, festivals have the power to shape communities and strengthen identity, and culture is nation-shaping and future-building.

Member of Parliament József Kovács (Fidesz) recalled the sixty-year history of the Gyulai Castle Theatre. As he said, the castle was renovated in 1958, and the castle spa was opened next door for a year. In 1963, István Miszlay, the chief director-director of the Békés County Jókai Theater – who was already familiar with foreign open-air theaters – convinced the authorities to organize one in the courtyard of the Gyula Castle. The castle theater finally became independent in 1978.