It is with a very, very sad heart that I let you know that Nina Kiraly (Dubrovskaya) passed away. We still can't process she is no longer with us. Apart from being a mother to me and my brother and a proud grandma to three beautiful and talented girls, she was also a world renowned expert on Polish and Eastern European theater who collaborated with such luminaries as Tadeusz Kantor and his Cricot 2 theater, Jerzy Jarocki and Anatoly Vassilyev. 

Nina was born in Moscow in 1940 and graduated from the Moscow Lomonosov University in 1962. After moving to Hungary she began lecturing at the ELTE (Eotvos Lorant University) in Budapest. In 1984 she was invited as a guest lecturer by the Theater Department of the Jagello University in Cracow where she stayed until 1989. From 1993-1999 she functioned as the director of OSZMI (Hungarian Theater Institute). During this period she initiated, edited and brought to publication many books by famous international theater directors and creators, introducing them to the Hungarian readers for the very first time. Between 2006-13 she was the artistic consultant for international projects at the Csokonai Theater in Debrecen and from 2013 till her death she worked at the National Theater under Attila Vidnyanszky’s direction. Nina thrived to bring international directors and scenic artists here and share them with the Hungarian public. She also helped taking important Hungarian productions to audiences around Europe. She served on many festival jury panels across Europe. Wherever she went she created a professional and personal community. Nina was dedicated to her work and always executed her vision with passion, she inspired and fostered many young theater people’s professional path. She made friendships both professional and personal that were inspiring and lasted a life time. Being around her was constant learning, she herself was always surrounded with books and publications learning constantly.

She was 77, way too young for us to let her go so soon. We are heartbroken but will keep her spirit alive and let it shine through. 

We will hold a memorial for her at the Hungarian National Theater in Budapest on August 24th, 2018.

(12 June 2018)