Magyar Theatre 3.71

The Magyar Theatre is a theatre operating in Budapest, Hungary. Its company started in August 22, 1837 as the first major Hungarian-language theatrical company in the city. They operated under this label until August 8, 1840, when the name was changed to National Theatre of Hungary. Switching homes two times, the company moved to its current building in 1966. The name Magyar Theatre was restored in September 1, 2000, with the opening of the new National Theatre.HistoryBuildingThe Magyar Theatre, designed by Adolf Láng, and founded by the Rákosi-Beöthy family was built in 1897 in the then-suburban Izabella square. The premiere was on 16 October 1897. The two-storied auditorium had 996 seats.In the first years, the venue mainly hosted opera pieces, then after the first decade, converted to a serious prosaic theatre. By 1907-1918 the Magyar Theatre's repertoire consisted of contemporary Hungarian and foreign dramas, supported by the building's small, intimate set-up.In 1914 the theatre was reconstructed by architect László Vágó. A new main hall had been added, and the number of the seats were increased well over a thousand. Many of the era's most prolific directors worked in the theatre during these years, including László Márkus, János Vaszary or Sándor Hevesi. In 1947, like all of the artistic venues of Budapest, the previously private theatre was nationalized. Between 1946 and 1951 it functioned as the chamber theatre of the National Theatre, and then served as the home of the Madách Theatre, and the Petőfi Theatre .The building got its current design in the reconstruction of 1964–66, led by Sándor Azbej, to function as a temporary home for the National Theatre. After raising down the old to the supporting walls, the new theatre got two new stories, and was also enlarged by 8m towards the square. This enabled the inclusion of a much larger main hall, and several workshops, costume and furniture storage, 10 new dressing rooms, and an enlarged auditorium. The facade is a relief made of 757 pieces of Zsolnay pirogranite, made by sculptor Gyula Illyés.