We’re welcoming the first month of summer with a diverse program:
We’re bringing our folk dance performance This Side of the Tisza, Beyond the Danube back to the stage, we’ll be hosting the Udvarhely Folk Dance Workshop Ensemble, and we’re joining the nationwide Night of Movement event series.
The chamber version of our performance Home in the Homeland, presented under the title This Side of the Tisza, Beyond the Danube, will be performed in three towns this June.
We’ll take the stage on June 3 in Nagyajta, on June 4 in Esztelnek, and finally on June 29 in Székelyderzs, as part of the 210th Hail Commemoration Boundary Procession and the 23rd Village Days.
More about the performance:
In this chamber production, we invite our audience on a dance-filled journey both east of the Tisza and west of the Danube. We step beyond the familiar landscapes of Transylvania—the hills and plains we know so well—and leave behind the region whose culture has been an inseparable part of our lives since childhood, one we speak almost as a native language.
We head westward to draw deeply from the dances and folk music of the Palóc people and the herders—swineherds, shepherds, horsemen, and cattlemen—of the Hortobágy, as well as the world of the Somogy peasants. Although all part of the same spiritual heritage, each community brings its own unique richness and values to light.
From Transcarpathia we gain a glimpse into the folk culture of the Seklers of Visk and the Roma community of Nagypalád.
Our journey concludes on the Great Plain, in the Hungarian town of Szeghalom, Békés County. Along the way, we encounter ancient traditions reaching far into the past, as well as modern waves of urbanized customs. All the while, we’ll share the treasures we bring from home.
The music is performed by the Heveder Band, whose energetic rhythms and sensitive melodies intertwine to create a captivating musical journey that transports the listener to the atmospheric landscapes of historical Greater Hungary.
Choreographers: Csilla Módosné Almási Berta, Máté Módos, Emese Kovács-Jelinek, József Kovács
Costume design: Zsuzska's Folksufni, Piroska Paluchné Percze, Hajnalka Rimóczi
Music editing: Heveder Band, Máté Módos
Stage adaptation: László Ivácson, Gizella Tekeres
Vocal performance: Judit Erőss
Dance ensemble:
Rebeka Abonyi, Gergely Balla, Csaba Gere, Gabriella Gere, Máté Drimba, Mónika Fazakas, Péter Ferencz, Zoltán-József Fülöp, Adorján Kiss, Lilla-Tünde Kocsis, Bernadett Kovács, Réka Lukács, Csaba Márton, Edina-Emőke Márton, Hunor-Mihály Pável, Norbert Portik-Cseres, Dorottya Sorbán, Noémi Szimjon, Dorottya-Lídia Vitályos
In mid-June, the Udvarhely Folk Dance Ensemble will make up for their postponed Sepsiszentgyörgy guest performance originally scheduled for April.
Their folk dance production titled Rare Hungarian, directed by Csaba Zsolt Tőkés, will be performed on June 11 at Háromszék Dance Studio.
RARE HUNGARIAN
In memory of Zoltán Kallós
The title of this folk dance performance, created in memory of Zoltán Kallós, refers both to the paternal and maternal homeland of the renowned ethnomusicologist—namely the region along the Little Someș River and Northern Mezőség—and to the area's rich dance and musical traditions. Symbolically, it also alludes to the increasingly depopulated, scattered Hungarian communities of the Mezőség, and to the exceptional legacy of Zoltán Kallós himself.
In this spirit, the creators of Rare Hungarian aim to convey what may have been “Uncle Zoli’s” most important message to us all: a reminder of life’s impermanence and a call to recognize how crucial it is to consider what we leave behind for the generations to come.
Cast:
Dance ensemble of the Udvarhely Folk Dance Ensemble: Katalin Antal, Gellért István Bakos, Lehel Zoltán Csog, Gyöngyi Demeter, Erzsébet Faluvégi, Árpád Hajdó, Lóránt Hajdó Nagy, Ágota Mátéfi, Henrietta Orbán, Réka Sipos, Adrienn Szabó, Tamás Zsolt Szabó
Sound technician: Károly Zilincki
Lighting technician: István Toásó
Creative Team:
Costume design: Melinda Székely
Set design: Csaba Zsolt Tőkés
Dance instructors: Tibor Feketelaki & Melinda Székely, Csongor Könczei & Júlia Vincze
Assistants: Árpád Hajdó, Csaba Fülöp, József Antal
Co-choreographers: Ignác Kádár, Hortenzia Lőrincz, Edit Tőkés
Artistic consultant: Csongor Könczei
Photography: Attila Bartis
Our End of Season Folk Dance House will take place on Friday, June 13, at Bábel House of Culture. With this event, we are also joining the Night of Movement initiative.
This nationwide program highlights the importance of regular physical activity and a healthy, active lifestyle, while also emphasizing community and fun. The Night of Movement encourages local communities to connect through various forms of movement—whether it's dance, sports, walking, or play—by taking part in shared activities.
Our hosts will once again be Katalin Stefán-Dobai and Bencze Stefán, who will start the evening at 8:00 PM with beginner-level dance instruction from Bodonkút (Kalotaszeg region).
Judit Erőss will lead the singing workshop.
Music by: Heveder Band and Folker Ensemble
Co-organizers: László Lajtha Foundation, House of Transylvanian Traditions
Tickets for the Udvarhely Folk Dance Ensemble’s guest performance can be purchased at the Central Ticket Office.
Opening hours:
Phone: 0267-312104
Tickets for our out-of-town performances are available at the local cultural centres’ box offices.
