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Ballet in Budapest
| Article
# : |
17110 |
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Section : |
THE ARTS
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| Issue
Date : |
12 / 1990 |
1,828 Words |
| Author
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Camille Hardy
Camille Hardy is a New York-based critic who publishes and
broadcasts on the arts internationally. |
Since the May 1990 election of Arpad Goncz to the Hungarian presidency, the forces of change, with ever-increasing momentum, have been transforming every aspect of life in Hungary. The Hungarian State Ballet, housed in Budapest's glittering State Opera House, is experiencing the same shock waves hitting all institutions in the city: youthful leadership, which must gain experience on the job; a revised, fragile economic structure; altered social policies for what had been secure positions in a government-owned shop; and something of an inverse impact from the recent relaxation of immigration rules.
Named artistic directors of the company in early 1990, Ildiko Pongor, the leading Hungarian ballerina, and Gabor Kevehazi, former premier danseur, are optimistic about the ensembles' future, once the transitional paroxysm is over. "We have everything here - a wonderful building, artists choreographers, orchestras, conductors, and designers," says Kevehazi. "Now the door to the world is open. Some people may leave, but others will stay or return."
The couple's partnership is not new, merely redefined. "I sat next to Ildiko in school," her co-director affirms, "and we danced together for almost seventeen years." Kevehazi is thirty-seven, and after a serious injury last season, he retired from an internationally acclaimed performing career. In their current relationship, Kevehazi functions as the troupe's executive director.
Dazzling Technique
Pongor is primarily concerned with reinforcing the dancer's technique through the kind of dazzling polish that has made her one of the few world-class ballerinas today. "Within two years," she predicts, "we will regain the cohesiveness disrupted by the closing of the theater for renovation and all the many subsequent changes in artistic direction." Other aspects of company organization emphasize both stability and continuity. Laszlo Seregi retains his position as resident choreographer, and the Hungarian Dance Academy (formerly the Hungarian State Ballet Institute), under the leadership of Imre Dozsa, remains on of the top five conservatories in the world.
Along with restructuring the national economy - even the currency will be altered as of January 1991 - the newly elected government is faced with a reorganization of Hungary's educational system as well. Karoly Manherz, state secretary of the Ministry of Cultural and Education, talks of implementing a planned system of public and private education
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