Reminders from the Balassi Institute – Hungarian Cultural Center
Upcoming Events and Scholarship Opportunities
May 15-16. Tao Te at Roy Arias Theaters
The Balassi Institute -Hungarian Cultural Center New York is proud to present two performances of Tao Te by award winning choreographer-dancer Ferenc Fehér at Theater 500, Roy Arias Theaters at 300 W43rd Street (off of 8th Avenue), at 7pm on 15 and 16 May. The show is a reflection on the concepts of harmony and conflict as related by the book Tao Te Ching, told through the medium of contemporary dance and martial arts. The production has so far garnered over half a dozen honors and awards, including the 2011 Rudolf Laban Prize for best Dance Theater Performance. To reserve tickets please write to info@culturehungary.org, indicating the date and the number of persons arriving with you. Alternatively, for a small service fee, you may use the online retailer in partnership with Roy Arias Theaters. To purchase tickets on-line please visit the following link http://www.smarttix.com/show.aspx?showcode=taoAAA.Tickets cost USD 10 per person. Reserved tickets may be picked up on the day of the show after 6pm (1 hour before curtain time) at the box office of Roy Arias Theaters. For detailed information please visit: http://culturehungary.org/index.php/en/2012-01-16-03-55-27/146-tao-te
May 11, 2012 Balázs Bagu's Vintondale grocery in New York
A unique peek into the life of Hungarian immigrants to the US in the first half of the 20th century. The Hungarian Cultural Center is proud to present a collection of unique objects and photos from a Pennsylvania small-town on their way from Vintondale, PA to the Hungarian Open Air Museum (Skanzen) in Szentendre, Hungary where they will be permanent exhibits in a replica house soon to be built. The collection there will represent the most detailed and authentic anthropological exhibit on the lives of first generation Hungarian Americans in Hungary. The opening will be held at 11 May, 2012, 5:30pm at the Hungarian Consulate General. The even includes the ceremony of the oath of citizenship and a short reception. All parts of this free event are open to the general public.
For detailed information click here: http://newyork.balassiintezet.hu/index.php/en/2012-01-16-03-55-27/143-balazs-bagus-vintondale-grocery
May 13, 2012 - Public Lecture on Open Air Museums and their Importance, Past and Present
Lecture in New Brunswick, NJ on the changing role and continued importance of open-air museums by director general of the Hungarian "Skansen" in Szentendendre, Dr Miklós Cseri. Venue: Hungarian Heritage Museum, 300 Somerset Street, New Brunswick, NJ. To learn more please visit this link: http://newyork.balassiintezet.hu/index.php/en/2012-01-16-03-53-43/144-public-lecture-on-open-air-museums-and-their-importance-past-and-present
Scholarships and Education Programs offered by the Balassi Institute, Summer 2012
Balassi Insitute is offering scholarships for overseas students to attend its taught summer programs combining language learning, cultural immersion and leisure, including trips to some of the most beautiful sights in the country. 10 scholarships are available for overseas students, covering costs and expenses of the stay in Hungary, as well as a tuition waiver. The deadline for applications is 15 May. The Summer University of the Balassi Institute accepts applications on a continuous basis. The courses between 30 July and 24 August accommodate all levels of proficiency, from absolute beginner to advanced, and offer a rich cultural experience beyond the classroom for all.
To find out more visit: http://culturehungary.org/index.php/en/summer-university
Events and Scholarships: Detailed Descriptions
May 15-16, Tao Te by Fehér Ferenc at Roy Arias Theaters
Introducing the winner of the 2010 Rudolf Laban prize: TAO TE in New York. Two performances of the multiple award winning performance based on Tao Te Ching showcasing the best contemporary Hungarian dance theater has to offer.
The Balassi Institute -Hungarian Cultural Center New York is proud to present two performances of Tao Te by award winning choreographer-dancer Ferenc Fehér and Ákos Dózsa at Theater 500, Roy Arias Theaters at 300 W43rd Street (off of 8th Avenue), at 7pm on 15 and 16 May. To reserve tickets please write to info@culturehungary.org, indicating the date and the number of persons arriving with you. Alternatively, for a small service fee, you may use the online retailer in partnership with Roy Arias Theaters. To purchase tickets on-line please visit the following link http://www.smarttix.com/show.aspx?showcode=taoAAA. Tickets cost USD 10 per person. Reserved tickets may be picked up on the day of the show after 6pm (1 hour before curtain time) at the box office of Roy Arias Theaters. Please call us if you do not receive a reply to your reservation request in 24 hours.
Tao Te won first prize at the 14th National and International Contemporary Dance Festival in Veszprém, Hungary, the Rudolf von Laban Prize for Best Contemporary Dance Performance of the Year 2010 in Hungary and third prize at the 15th MASDANZA International Choreography Contest in Maspolomas, Gran Canarias.
The title of this duet for two male dancers refers to Lao Tze's famous and well-known work, Tao Te Ching – The Path of Virtue. In the title, Tao refers to the path, the way, the universal law, and Te refers to virtue – the power through which tao manifests itself. The task is to maintain harmony. The original text invites readers to strive for a virtuous and meaningful life, but it also describes the failures that this search involves. It is this tension that is visible in the dance. The forty-minute long intense physical dance is a story of two men with different characters and attitudes. Are they friends? Or brothers? Or are they just strangers? Their character evolves through a series of situations, conflicts, inner struggles and failures. They change and develop just as the path changes as you go on your way. Can they find the desired harmony in the end?
"The piece for the most part is nothing else than an endless duel between the two dancers, who seem as if they were living in symbiosis, as if they would not even exist without a partner/adversary. Their struggles are, on the one hand, playfully stylized, as if they were merely the figures in a computer game or a marionette theatre, and at other times, as if they were the heroes of an absurd comedy, or rather, a strange burlesque." - Ágnes Veronika Tóth, kultura.hu
Creators: Ferenc Fehér, Ákos Dózsa, Dancers: Ákos Dózsa, Ferenc Fehér, Music: Ferenc Fehér, Lighting designer: Gabi Bánki, Light: Dávid Kovácsovics, Sound technician: Judit Simom, Choreography: Ferenc Fehér
May 11, 2012 Balázs Bagu's Vintondale grocery in New York
A unique peek into the life of Hungarian immigrants to the US in the first half of the 20th century. The Hungarian Cultural Center is proud to present a collection of unique objects and photos from a Pennsylvania small-town on their way from Vintondale, PA to the Hungarian Open Air Museum (Skanzen) in Szentendre, Hungary where they will be permanent exhibits in a replica house soon to be built. The collection there will represent the most detailed and authentic anthropological exhibit on the lives of first generation Hungarian Americans in Hungary. The opening will be held at 11 May, 2012, 5:30pm at the Hungarian Consulate General. The even includes the ceremony of the oath of citizenship and a short reception. All parts of this free event are open to the general public.
Hungarian immigrants, like most other groups arriving to the United States, tended to establish close-knit communities. These communities have made a major contribution to the historical heritage of the United States, and the Cultural Center, teaming up with the Hungarian Open Air Museum, is proud to honour their legacy by presenting a collection of objects and photos that have survived intact for the past century. The exhibit will be shown for a limited period of time starting with 11 May, 2012. The opening will take place at 5:30pm at the Hungarian Consulate General (223 East 52nd Street, between 2nd and 3rd Avenues), followed by a short reception. The event is free and open to the general public. The opening coincides with the ceremony of the oath of citizenship whereby previous US applicants become citizens of Hungary. This festive moment is also a public event.
The butcher shop and grocery on the main street of Vintondale were opened in 1921 after the house was purchased by Balázs Bagu (1889-1942), a miner from the village of Bátyu in Bereg County, Hungary. Bagu and his wife Ida Antal (1902-1993) ran their business in the revamped space on the ground floor while Bagu continued working shifts in coal mine no. 6 of the Vinton Mines & Coke Works (Vintondale, Cambria County, Pennsylvania), owned by the Lackawanna Company and located a little over 100 yards from the house. Bagu lived together with his family in the room and the kitchen behind the shop and also offered boarding rooms on the floor above, where Hungarian miners lived and paid the family in exchange for lodging.
The grocery business lasted for only a short time and was closed for good at the onset of the Great Depression at the end of the 1920s. Following the death of Balázs Bagu in 1942, his widow and other relatives who subsequently inherited the house preserved the entire shop in its original condition along with many of the furnishings in the living quarters, a rare display of respect for tradition that has served as an amazing testimony to the lifestyle and interior décor characteristic of Hungarian mining communities in Western Pennsylvania during the 1920s.
After Balázs Bagu's widow had died, the house was occupied by Zoltán Antal (1913-2010) in 1995. Zoltán Antal, younger brother of Ida, was of the generation already born in Pennsylvania and continued to care for the house and its valuable furnishings until his death in 2010 at the age of 97. The current owner is Zoltán's daughter, Zolinda Antal, a third-generation Hungarian-American who still speaks Hungarian. She is also a relative of Balázs Bagu.
Through their devoted care of the building and its furnishings, Zolinda Antal and her ancestors have carefully nurtured an imprint of the Hungarian community that once thrived in the rapidly deteriorating environment of closed mining settlements. Their respect for tradition and their Hungarian identity stand as shining proof that Hungarians who immigrated to America more than a century ago, along with their descendants, are not only part of Hungarian culture, but also that their cultural values are worthy of preservation and presentation to a wider audience, being also an important part of US history.
May 13, 2012 - Public Lecture on Open Air Museums and their Importance, Past and Present
Lecture in New Brunswick, NJ on the changing role and continued importance of open-air museums by director general of the Hungarian "Skansen" in Szentendendre, Dr Miklós Cseri. The Hungarian Open Air Museum is embarking on an ambitious course of enriching its anthropogical collections with sections devoted to diaspora Hungarian communities, including those in the United States.The talk which is open and free to the general public, will be held at the Hungarian Heritage Museum, 300 Somerset Street, New Brunswick, NJ, at 4 pm, 13 May 2012, sponsored by the Bessenyei György Hungarian Alumni Association, the Hungarian Cultural Center, the Hungarian Heritage Museum and the Open Air Museum in Szentendre, Hungarian.
The Hungarian Cultural Center cordially invites you to the public lecture by Dr Miklós Cseri, director-general of the Hungarian Open Air Museum in Szentendre, exploring the new roles and functions and the continued importance of open air museum in Hungary and around the world. Anthropology, more than perhaps other social sciences, depends on studying and recreating complex social environments without reducing them to models and schemes. Skansens around the world are at the vanguard of these efforts, teaching students and adults in immersive environments about traditional local culture and society. The Szentendre Skanzen has been exploring novel ways and concepts of presenting anthropological evidence in quasi-native environments, contributing decisively to the preservation of Hungarian folk cultural heritage. This task and its challenges will be discussed in an accessible and free public lecture at the Hungarian Heritage Museum, 300 Somerset Street, New Brunswick, NJ, at 4 pm, 13 May 2012. The event is sponsored by the Bessenyei György Hungarian Alumni Association, the Hungarian Cultural Center, the Hungarian Heritage Museum and the Open Air Museum in Szentendre, Hungarian.
Scholarships and Education Programs offered by the Balassi Institute, Summer 2012
Summer University at Balassi Institute: The Summer University of the Balassi Institute will be held between 30 July and 24 August, 2012 offering a wide range of programs in and outside of Budapest, including Hungarian language classes, lectures on Hungarian culture and field trips to popular spots in Hungary). We offer Hungarian classes at all levels from basic to advanced (A1-C1). The lectures (in English) as well as the field trips are designed to present different aspects of Hungarian culture. Our experienced and enthusiastic teachers use the most up-to-date methods of guided discovery and self-discovery; students are exposed to everyday situations in Hungarian in a challenging way. The Hungarian language lessons are combined with lectures on Hungarian history, music, folk and fine arts, gastronomy as well as on the country's special position in Central Europe with the teaching aim to survey the periods of Hungarian history, focusing on the most important events and personalities as well as the European aspects, 20th century etc. The museum visits and field trips connected to the lectures assist in putting the theory into practice. The capital city, the atmosphere of an exciting European metropolis and the countryside provide a variety of enriching cultural experiences.
Lectures include The Hungarian Language, Spotlight on Hungarian Theatre, The Breakthrough Period – Hungarian Painting 1867-1920, Milestones of Hungarian History, The Revolution and War of Independence in 1956, The History of Hungarian Film. Excursion are planned to Northern Hungary and to Lake Balaton. Budapest programs include guided tours, museum tours including the unique Vasarely Museum and the House of Terror, as well as wine-tasting and other cultural and culinary experiences.
Students can apply for the Balassi Summer University program through the Hungarian Scholarship Board to compete for funding, or they can enroll and pay for the course themselves. Heritage students from overseas can apply for the Balassi Summer University scholarship directly (see below). For more information, please contact Bernadett Budavári (Department of Hungarian Language, Balassi Institute, Budapest, bernadett.budavari@bbi.hu).
Overseas scholarships for the Balassi Summer University in Budapest: The Balassi Institute invites applications for a Hungarian State intended for individuals of Hungarian descent living outside of Hungary (specifically: North-America, South-America, Australia, New Zealand), who wish to improve their command of Hungarian language and rediscover their cultural heritage. The four-week long course takes place at the Balassi Institute in Budapest. Young people of Hungarian descent, who are 18 years old or older, and who are not eligible for other scholarships announced by the Hungarian Scholarship Board for Summer Universities, are invited to apply. Volunteer work, references from their University, and any other activities related to the Hungarian culture are taken into consideration in the selection of the applicants.
During the four-week long program the students attend 100 Hungarian language classes, and they can participate in Hungarian studies lectures and extramural activities. Outside of class they will visit museums and will have various programs where they can gain experience regarding the Hungarian culture. At the end of the program they will take an oral and a written exam. For those students who wish to apply for credits at their Universities, the Balassi Institute provides detailed course descriptions.
The program runs for 4 weeks (30 July, 2012 – 24 August, 2012), and the scholarship covers the tuition fee, course materials, student residence (2-3 persons per room), three meals a day, pass for public transportation, the cost of attending the cultural programs in the afternoons, attending the excursion. Deadline for electronic application: 15 May, 2012.
For detailed information and to access the electronic application system please visit: http://www.bbi.hu/index.php/hu/palyazatok01/call-for/354-call-for-scholarship-applications-balassi-summer-university
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