While Bedřich Smetana's 1866 work can justifiably be termed a folk opera, on the other hand it also follows the then popular German singspiel pattern. Based on what we know today, though, the piece - with its full-blooded, life-affirming and energetic music, brilliantly colourful grand scenes and rollicking dance movements - can also even be interpreted as an ancestor of musical theatre.
It is no coincidence, then, that Gábor Hollerung asked director Vajk Szente, famous for his spectacular musicals, to stage this production. The BDO's workshop has dusted off the piece, with the brand new Hungarian-language version now in the works resetting the story to the world of the films of Jiří Menzel without deviating from Smetana's original intentions. Dr Kecal (Krisztián Cser), a Prague lawyer who arrives in a closed rural community, is working on behalf of Mr Mícha, the mayor of ...the village, to arrange for Mícha's awkward son Vašek (Zoltán Megyesi) to be married to the famously beautiful Mařenka (Melinda Heiter), daughter of the Krušinas, a family of modest means. However, the girl is head over heels in love with the mysterious Jeník (Botond Ódor), who himself doesn't even know exactly who he is. This is where things start to get complicated - with betrayal, lies, misunderstandings, hysteria, quarrels and misfortune all part of the mix - and it all takes place under the eyes of the village's always curious inhabitants, who are not the least bit shy about sharing their opinions about everything. Together with them, we can cheer on the lovers in the hopes of reaching the inevitable happy ending.
We promise truly relaxing entertainment with lots of dancing and passion during the carnival season.
Presented by: Müpa Budapest, Budafok Dohnanyi Orchestra
Parking information
We wish to inform you that in the event that Müpa Budapest's underground garage and outdoor car park are operating at full capacity, it is advisable to plan for increased waiting times when you arrive. In order to avoid this, we recommend that you depart for our events in time, so that you you can find the ideal parking spot quickly and smoothly and arrive for our performance in comfort. The Müpa Budapest underground garage gates will be operated by an automatic number plate recognition system. Parking is free of charge for visitors with tickets to any of our paid performances on that given day. The detailed parking policy of Müpa Budapest is available here.
Refreshments – Without the Queue
Thanks to our new catering service at the Átrium Snack Bar, you can forget about waiting in line during intermissions for some refreshments and get your order prepped especially for you by the time the intermission actually starts. Find out more about pre-ordering here.
Safe ticket purchase
Dear Visitors, please note that only tickets purchased from the Müpa website and official ticket offices are guaranteed to be valid. To avoid possible inconvenience, we suggest buying tickets to our performances and concerts via the mupa.hu website, the Interticket national network (jegy.hu) or at our official ticket offices.
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