The Hungarian Theatre of Cluj closed a busy season: the 2022/2023 season featured five premieres, the 8th edition of the Interferences International Theatre Festival and guest performances at various festivals.

The new productions of the 230th anniversary season, which has just ended, focus on Hungarian authors: the 2022/2023 season of the theatre began with the premiere of Young Barbarians, directed by Attila Vidnyánszky, Jr. The performance was inspired by the lives of Béla Bartók and Zoltán Kodály, based on a text by Miklós H. Vecsei and improvisations by the creative team, and was created as a joint production of the Hungarian Theatre of Cluj and the Gyula Castle Theatre.

In connection with the 125th anniversary of Áron Tamási's birth, the Cluj Theatre presented the drama Ancestral Comfort in October, directed by László Béres.

In February, the audience had the chance to see the stage adaptation of Zsigmond Móricz's realistic novel, Relatives, directed by László Bocsárdi. The production was also performed at the 5th Reflex International Theatre Festival in May.

This was followed by another novel adaptation: a stage version of Dezső Kosztolányi's Édes Anna by István Szabó K. The production, which premiered in April, was a great success with tickets already sold out for all the season's performances before the premiere.

The last premiere of the season, in June, was directed by Botond Nagy, who returned to the Cluj company for the fourth time. This time he staged Sophocles' tragedy Elektra in the Studio Hall.

On December 17th, the Hungarian Theatre of Cluj celebrated its 230th anniversary, and to mark the occasion, the institution organized a full day of events, whereas the highlight of the 230th anniversary season was the 8th edition of the Interferences International Theatre Festival, which took place between November 17-27, and was entitled Fear / Hope. During the eleven days of the festival, fourteen companies from eleven countries performed for the Cluj audiences. Following the 2020 edition of the festival, which was held online, this time the programme included performances by companies from France, Germany, Romania, Hungary, Ukraine, Serbia, Luxembourg, Portugal, Slovenia, Switzerland and South Korea.

Based on the recommendations of the participating theatres and members of the Senate, the Senate of the Romanian Theatre Association (UNITER) also awarded the Ion Caramitru Award for Excellence to the Interferences International Theatre Festival, organised by the Hungarian State Theatre of Cluj-Napoca, at its 31st UNITER Awards Gala.

Prometheus'22, a joint production of the Hungarian Theatre of Cluj, the Constanţa State Theatre and SNT Drama Ljubljana, premiered in Cluj in July 2022, was performed seven times in Ljubljana last October, then was included in the Interferences programme, and was presented twice in January this year in Constanţa. As a culmination of the European Theatre Union's Catastrophe project, the production also took part in the Finisterra festival organized by the São João National Theatre in Porto and the Union of European Theatres.

In the season which has just ended, the Cluj company has also been invited to several festivals: Hamlet and Macbett were performed at the 32nd National Theatre Festival in Bucharest, and Macbett, Young Barbarians, Animal Farm and Prometheus'22 were guest performances at the 10th Theatre Olympics in Hungary this year. Young Barbarians was also part of the programme of the IX Madách International Theatre Encounter (MITEM) in Budapest.

The Romanian Theatre Association (UNITER) nominated Éva Imre for the Best Actress in a Leading Role award for her portrayal of Barbarian B. in Young Barbarians.

Éva Imre and András Visky received this year the Transylvanian Hungarian Prize for Contemporary Culture, the former in the performing arts category while the latter in the literature category.

After the summer break, the theatre will be back in August with performances presented at the 14th Hungarian Days of Cluj. Tickets for the August and September performances can be purchased online at www.biletmaster.ro until 7 August, and from 8 August also at the theatre's ticket office.

The company of the Hungarian Theatre of Cluj wishes you all a wonderful summer and looks forward to welcoming you in the 2023/2024 season!