The Scourge of God

Based on Miklós Bánffy's play, The Great Lord

National Theatre, Budapest, Hungary

Director: Attila Vidnyánszky

Due to the show’s special start and the custom-built auditorium, the doors will only be opened 5 minutes before the start.

2 hours 50 minutes with 1 breaks.

Attila, King of the Huns is at the pinnacle of his power: he has conquered half the world, but he has not destroyed Rome. Even the Goths submit to him. Gothic Princess Mikolt is seething with hatred and seeking revenge for the killing of her parents and the subjugation of her people. Through clever ruses, she makes Attila fall for her, and kills him on the wedding night. Deep beneath her frenzied thirst for revenge, she harbours a passionate love for him, too. Attila’s murder and death are the first and last moment of quenching her lust for vengeance and for a passionate embrace.

If we look at our present, we see millions of migrants drifting from one country to another, from continent to continent, in search for work and a better life. Hundreds of thousands are forced to leave their homes because of wars or hunger, looking to start life anew. In its historical dimension, the dramatic convergence of East and West is repeated one more time. Can we retain our roots and our very selves, or will the pressure force new national identities upon us, for the sake of peace and integrity? This play, however, is not about our present. We propose to put this issue into a historical perspective and discover the role of the individual person, cast into these restless times.

The Warlord Attila

László Mátray m.v.

Mikolt princess

Estilla Mikecz m.v.

Prioress Eirene

Ildikó Bánsági

Berik, Gothic prince

Lajos Ottó Horváth

Archimandrite Euthymos, Byzantine envoy

Ádám Schnell

Zerkon, jester

Gyula Bodrogi

Ataulf, Gothic warrior

Tibor Fehér

Hylarion, a Manicheist

Gábor Bakos-Kiss

Kurkut, the ogan khan

Dénes Farkas

High Shaman

Tamás Olt m.v.

In the Shaman woman’s role, Éva Kanalas performs her own songs

Kanalas Éva m.v.

Bishop

Nándor Berettyán

Europé

Martin Mészáros

Edek, a messenger

Márk Nagy

Isla

Sándor Berettyán

Hun warrior

Roland Bordás

Stage and costume designer

Bilozub Olekszandr

Dramaturgist

Zsófia Rideg

Prompter

Kati Gróf

Stage manager

István Géczy

István Lencsés

Krisztián Ködmen

Assistant director

Rita Herpai

Director

Attila Vidnyánszky

Main Stage

Attila Vidnyánszky

Hungarian theatre and opera director, teacher.

He was born in Berehove (Ukraine) in 1964.

He graduated in Hungarian literature and linguistics from Uzhhorod State University (1985). He taught literature and history for two years. In 1992, he graduated in theatre directing from the Karpenko-Kary State Academy of Theatre and Cinema in Kyiv.

In 1993, he founded his own company, the Gyula Illyés Hungarian National Theatre in Berehove, of which he is still the Principal Director.

In 2004, he was appointed Principal Director of the Hungarian State Opera House. In 2006 - 2013, he was Director of the Csokonai National Theatre in Debrecen.

Since 2013, he has been the Director General of the National Theatre. In 2014, he founded the National Theatre's MITEM festival (Madách International Theatre Meeting).

Since 2023, he has been a member of the International Theatre Olympics Committee and Artistic Director of the 2023 Budapest Theatre Olympics.

He has also directed at the National Academic Theatre in Kyiv (Leszya Ukrayinka Theatre), the Alexandrinsky Theatre in St Petersburg) and the Hungarian State Opera House.

His performances have toured Europe from Stockholm to Moscow and Tbilisi, from Strasbourg to Nancy and Kyiv.

He has received many awards, including Ukraine's Artist of Merit (2002), the Meyerhold Prize (2009, Moscow) and the Kossuth Prize (2011).

His films include Liberté 56, The Boy Who Turned into a Deer.

He has taught acting at the Karpenko-Kary State Academy of Theatre and Cinema in Kyiv and at the University of Kaposvár. Since 2020, he has been the master of a directing class at the University of Theatre and Film in Budapest.

He has been a member of the Hungarian Academy of Arts since 2005. In 2008, he co-founded the Hungarian Theatre Society and has been its President since. Between 2010 and 2013, he also served as Chairman of the Theatre Arts Committee under the Minister of Human Resources. Since 2020, he has been Chairman of the Board of the foundation operating the University of Theatre and Film in Budapest.

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