A Charity Gala Brought the Season to a Close

The Harag György Company held its End-of-Season Gala on Friday at 6 p.m. This year’s event was also a charity performance, with the proceeds from the gala going towards the medical treatment of one of the company’s members. The company donated not only the proceeds from ticket sales: actors with a passion for the visual arts – Bodea-Gál Tibor, Erdei Máté, Frumen Gergő and Szabó János-Szilárd – offered their own artworks for sale, while many audience members also made donations to the collection box placed in the theatre foyer.

The theme of this year’s gala was the blooper – the possibility of making a mistake or committing an error that keeps theatre professionals constantly on their toes and which, if it can happen, will sooner or later most likely happen, whether it is a textual mistake or an actual stumble, uncontrollable laughter or a technical mishap.

The actors took to the stage with poetry, dance, individual and group performances, as well as comic sketches. At the end of the first act, they paid tribute to the company’s deceased honorary members. Hosts Laczkó Tekla and Poszet Nándor first read out anecdotes about theatrical mishaps, featuring Bessenyei István, Czintos József and Zákány Mihály, and then honoured the deceased with a musical tribute. Images of the former members who had already joined the “heavenly company”, shown in some of their former roles, were displayed on both sides of the stage.

An important part of the company’s End-of-Season Gala was the announcement of the results of the audience vote concerning the season – this time, the past two seasons. The results were announced to the audience by Bessenyei Gedő István, director of the company.

Among the productions, Out of Order  (dir. Zoltán Lendvai) was the audience favourite on the Main Stage, Kohlhaas (dir. Marcel Bélai) at the Studio, while From the East of the Sun, from the West of the Moon (dir. Rita Bartal Kiss) was the favourite in the puppet theatre category. Among the productions for young audiences, Szaffi (dir. Regina Nagy) received the most votes. III. Richárd also achieved considerable success with audiences, winning in the categories of Best Director, Best Costume Design and Best Set Design, thanks to the work of István Albu and Erika Márton.

The audience vote showed that spectators in Satu Mare favoured light-hearted and musical productions, while serious drama also found its place on the imaginary podium. It also became clear that audiences now primarily follow the company’s work through social media.

The awards were presented in four blocks during the performance. According to the audience vote, the award for Best Supporting Actress went to Budizsa Evelyn, while Best Supporting Actor was awarded to Péter Attila Zsolt. The latter also received an award in the Best Comedy Performer category, while Moldován Blanka was voted Best Comedy Actress. In the Best Dramatic Performer category, the winners were Méhes Kati and Nagy Csongor Zsolt. The audience award winners also received a €100 cash prize, courtesy of M-SYS Kft.

The second block featured awards decided by the company’s Artistic Council and funded by the Proscenium Foundation. The Supporter’s Award, accompanied by a lifetime season ticket, was presented to Poszet Ferenc, who has supported the work of the company for decades. Among the backstage staff, the Diószeghy Olga Award was presented to Vékony Borbála, secretary to the director, while the Angyalka Award, established in memory of prompter József Angel, went to set designer Haiduc Denis Máté. The Baranyai Zoltán Memorial Award, established for young actors under the age of 35 and funded by the Baranyai family, was presented this year to actor Orbán Zsolt. The recipient of the Kovács Ildikó Memorial Award, established for members of the Brighella Puppet Theatre section, was Kófity Annamária.

As a result of a secret vote within the company, four Awards for Artistic Excellence were also presented, with the support of Korall Klinika, each carrying a €200 prize. The Awards for Excellence in Acting went to Budizsa Evelyn and Nagy Csongor Zsolt, while Laczkó Tekla and Szabó János-Szilárd were recognised for their contribution to building and strengthening the company.

The fourth block featured the grand prizes named after former directors of the Harag György Company. Two of these – the Harag György Award and the Ács Alajos Award – are decided by a vote of the company, while the most recently established Csíky András Award is awarded based on the votes of the Artistic Council.

Representing Poszet Kft., Kinga Poszet presented the Ács Alajos Award, accompanied by a €500 cash prize, to Erdei Máté. The Csíky András Memorial Award, together with a €500 cash prize, was presented to Méhes Kati, a lifetime member of the company, by Attila Simon, representing Kreatív Kft.

The most prestigious and highest-value award, the Harag György Award, carrying a €1,000 cash prize, was presented this year to Moldován Blanka. The certificate was presented to her by Haller Csilla, Financial Director of Autonet Kft., which supports the award.

Naturally, the awards were accompanied by more than certificates and cash prizes: the floral arrangements presented to the award recipients were provided with the support of Saraflower Florist.