Today celebrating DOUBLE GLOBE DAY!
William Shakespeare (April, 23. 1564 – 23 April, 23. 1616).
… Firstly, since 1970, Earth Day has been observed around the GLOBE as a day to raise environmental awareness.
… Secondly, today April, 22. Shakespeare and the Globe Theater are as two words reflecting to one-another!
On the occasion of the 460th anniversary of the playwright’s birth, a celebration was held in the special room of the Budapest’s Mariott Hotel which was just a couple of steps away from the Shakespeare statue outside the hotel. The celebration was organized by the Shakespeare Statue Friends Society: Judit Kurucz-Nagy, Kati Todás, dr. Monika Tóth. At the opening of the festive event, after a short introduction into the presenters, a theater gong sounded in style, and then Benji Horváth – actor – founder of the House of Young Dramatists, performed an excerpt from “The Storm” – Prospero’s monologue. Afterwards, flutist Judit Nagy and her student Bianka Urbán performed music from Shakespeare’s time. Then listen to XXX Sonnet by Zsóka Szabó – editor of M5channel Hungarian Television. Dance artist Dr. Monika Tóth took us back with her beautiful performance into the world of renaissance dances. We were able to relive Hamlet: Hecuba’s monologue performed by Lőrincs Tarján – Szkéné Theater actor. After a short break, Shakespeare’s era resumed, played by Károly Ambrus tárogató (The táragó is the Stradivarius of wind instruments. Its relative combines the characteristics of the saxophone, clarinet, oboe and bassoon). The performance of the students from the Eötvös József High School class 8/A played “Shakespeare’s quotes in Hungarian and English” … well done. It was uplifting to listen to Győző Mihályi – Jászai award-winning artist reminisce about his stage roles in countless Shakespeare plays.
One of the highlights the invited guest architect Judit Osskü’s commemoration of dr. Jozsef Finta, who early past away this year. Dr. József Finta, who initially looked and discussed at several round about, locations, finally desided the Mariott Hotel (formerly Hotel Intercontinental) have Shakeespeare statue outside at the hotel’s restaurant terrace. He also designed the set of memorial plaques on which the history of the statue can be read in Hungarian and English (unfortunately, the English decription is kinda messy as the weather has slightly damaged it, which is still waiting for the inscriptions to be republished in readable form). There are also the names on the memorial wall connected to the Hungarian Shakespeare cult summary of famous literary translators, directors, theater directors, writers, writers, and actors.
The Shakespeare statue lives on as the world’s number one playwright who comes to his audience as an actor to offer himself with kind attention.
This work of art is a worthy memorial, which draws England, Australia and Hungary into a spiritual circle and pays tribute to the genius of William Shakespeare.
(About the history of the statue its creator, the sculptor Andor Mészáros (Budapest,1900, †Melbourne, 1972) who emigrated to Australia, created the Avon swan statue for the Australian city of Ballart in 1960. Retired Hungarian prosecutor Dr. Károly Nagy was visiting abroad in 1998 visit the venue, decided that it would be good to set up the valuable work of art at home! The artist’s son, the sculptor Michael Mészáros, undertook the creation of the negative of the original statue, after which donations had to be collected for the transport home and casting; the work was finally completed by the sculptor Gábor Mihály.)
In April, 23. 2003. the Budapest Shakespeare statue committee gave green light also for the memorial wall made according to the idea and plan of the epitaph Dr. Jozsef Finta, the bronze statue of an actor bowing to his audience. This is a replica …. as said earlier … in 1960 stands the original in the town of Ballarat, Vic. Australia.
In Hungary the cult of Shakespeare – the Avon swan really has an extremely large presence. In the theater season fourteen Shakespeare plays are performed in twenty theaters in Hungary.
At the end of the presentations a good looking and delicious Globe formation of carott cake was served. Thereafter, a group of performers stood outside as a sign of respect and layed wreat, the Australian Society of Friends also placed a wreath beside “The Actor’s” statue.
Last but not least … The statue looks to the other side of the River Danube and, like the figure bowing as the actor, gazing up on the Castle Theater, as if paying homage to the Hungarian Theater.
Tourist walking on the Pest side of the Capital along the banks of the River Danube worthwhile to stop for a minute … take a snap … have a thought or two of England’s national poet and the “Bard of Avon”
William Shakespeare
Riport and snaps by Aggie Reiter
Rolling in Budapest 