On 27 March, on the occasion of World Theatre Day, the Greek director giant, who founded the Olympics, Theodoros Terzopoulos, gifted the National Theatre with a traditional theatrical tragedy mask. The ceremony took place in the ancient Greek amphitheater of Epidaurus.

The mask was accepted by two representatives of the young generation of actors, Ilka Sipos and Péter Juhász, who worked with the master in Budapest in the production of The Bacchae. The two young people are third-year students of the Rippl-Rónai Institue of Arts and Theater at Szent István University in the class of Attila Vidnyánszky, János Zalán, and Zsuzsa Varga. The Greek artist concluded his speech with the following: "My heartfelt congratulations to the Hungarian National Theatre and the organisers of this dynamic, versatile, and universal programme, which awakens the truths that only great theatrical art can offer." Following the handover, the mask "set off" on a European tour to visit a few of the artists participating in the Theatre Olympics. Someone will be met in their own venues, but most will be visited by the mask and the film crew on tour: clown Slava Polunin on his Italian tour, director Tiziana Barbiero in her theatre in Bergamo, and Romeo Castellucci and Heiner Goebbels will also appear in the film about the trip. You can follow the adventures of the mask on the Theatre Olympics website and social media.

The traditional theatrical mask will arrive in Hungary for the opening event on 15 April, where it will also cross the Danube as part of a breathtaking production.

(05 April 2023)