Based on an idea of Szilveszter Ókovács, the story of the fourth wise man is told by the Advent séance Artaban by Attila Pacsay to be premiered on 9 December 2023 at the Eiffel Art Studios of the Hungarian State Opera. The audience can enjoy the one-hour surround sound meditative performance, which also affects other senses, in the dark, in loungers, wearing sleep masks.
The Hungarian State Opera announces a change in the programme advertised for 4 and 8 December 2023. Instead of the concert version of Nabucco with Plácido Domingo in the title role, the international guest star will appear in a more versatile and richer programme, in agreement with the OPERA. The programme on the two dates includes highlights from Nabucco as well as a Verdi opera gala with the participation of Domingo and the previously announced Hungarian soloists.
Based on the novel The Melancholy of Resistance by László Krasznahorkai, Péter Eötvös's new opera entitled Valuska premieres on 2 December 2023 at the Eiffel Art Studios. The composer's first Hungarian-language grotesque commedia tragica, commissioned by the Hungarian State Opera, featuring soloists Zsolt Haja, Adrienn Miksch, Tünde Szabóki, and András Hábetler is staged by Bence Varga and conducted by Kálmán Szennai.
In view of the great interest, on 1 December 2023, starting at 11:00 a.m., the Hungarian National Ballet has scheduled an additional performance of The Nutcracker, making it the longest series of Tchaikovsky's fairy-tale ballet, with 41 performances running between 24 November 2023 and 6 January 2024, at the Hungarian State Opera. While OPERA's traditional holiday productions attract full houses again this year, the Opera House also intends to pay attention to the needy with several charity events in cooperation with its partners.
The song recital of Piotr Beczała in the series Stars' Recitals with Piano features songs and arias by Karłowicz, Dvořák, Tchaikovsky, and Rachmaninov. The partner of the Polish star tenor for the evening on 26 November 2023 is the internationally renowned pianist Helmut Deutsch.
For the first time in its nearly 140-year history, the Hungarian State Opera is staging the tetralogy Der Ring des Nibelungen on four consecutive days, according to Wagner's original intention. The productions staged by Géza M. Tóth can be seen between 9 & 12 and 16 & 19 November 2023 at the historic Opera House in Budapest. The ensembles of the OPERA are conducted by the renowned János Kovács.
The internationally renowned opera singer-couple will appear in the roles of Leonora and Manrico in a concert performance of one of Verdi's most popular operas on 2 February 2024, at the Locomotive Hall of the Eiffel Art Studios. Further cast includes Mihály Kálmándy and Ildikó Komlósi, both acclaimed soloists of the Hungarian State Opera, the Hungarian State Opera Orchestra and Chorus are conducted by Denis Vlasenko. Tickets are on sale from 26 October 2023.
The Hungarian National Ballet, the 139-year-old official ballet company of the Hungarian State Opera, announces an audition upon invitation to be held from 10:00 on 4 February 2024 at the Opera House for immediate openings as well as contracts starting 15 July 2024 (depending on the applicants’ work visa requirements).
The OPERA presents Mahler's monumental Symphony No. 8 at the Opera House on 1 October 2023. The ensembles consisting of more than 300 artists are conducted by Gábor Hollerung.
Glinka's Ruslan and Lyudmila Overture, Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No. 2 and Tchaikovsky's Symphony No. 5 are included in the season-opening OPERA186 concert at the Hungarian State Opera on 24 September 2023. The concert tying in with the Slavic Season features pianist Ádám Balogh, the OPERA Orchestra is conducted by Pinchas Steiberg.
The five ballet performances of Swan Lake were enthusiastically received by eight thousand, and the two opera performances of Madama Butterfly by a further two thousand paying spectators – often accompanied by a standing ovation – between 8 and 13 September 2023, in the season opening series of the Dubai Opera. Among the warmly received productions, Puccini's opera will also be heard in a concert version at the Budapest Opera House on 23 and 26 September.
At the invitation of the Dubai Opera, the Hungarian State Opera will perform as a guest in the United Arab Emirates between 8 and 13 September 2023, with the productions of Swan Lake and Madama Butterfly. The seven-performance tour, involving a total of 244 artists and employees, is the largest presentation of the institution's decade-long presence in the Middle East so far, and at the same time the second largest-ever guest performance of Hungarian performing arts after the OPERA's 2018 performance in New York. The 12-day Dubai project with a total cost of half a billion HUF is entirely covered by the invitant.