Magyar Hírek, 1986 (39. évfolyam, 1-26. szám)
1986-11-08 / 22. szám
Religion and Hungarian nationality Hungarians that it would be pleased to see their Church in its own bosom. “The decision of the presbytery and the members to stay independent is evidence of the strength and generosity of our community” — commented Sándor Varga. “Ever since then the congregation have maintained the Church with voluntary donations.” The Sunday afternoon divine services are followed by tea and cakes. Six groups of ladies' undertake the catering in turn. As the Rev. Sándor Varga adds, they are glad to see people there even if they had not attended divine service. Sometimes forty sometimes as many as eighty, or even a hundred people gather there on Sundays. Understandably — due to poorer public transport facilities — fewer come at Christmas and Easter. The minister talks warmly about the loyalty of the members of the congregation, for instance about the eighty-three years old gentleman, who travels sixty miles to attend divine service. He sets out in the morning and gets home late at night. They even have a member who lives in Glasgow, who visits them when down on business. When I was there, a letter came from Southampton, which is also a long way. An elderly lady enquired how she could join the church, how she could come to divine service and other gatherings. Serving as a social centre is characteristic of the churches of the diaspora. The Rev. Sándor Varga believes that religious and charitable services go hand in hand; including psychological advice, the family counselling and caring for the lonely. This unfortunately demands more and more attention. Divine service on Christmas Day is followed by Christmas dinner for the lonely. The minister and his wife as well as volunteers visit members of the congregation, who are left alone and need help and support throughout the year. And the young? Well, just like elsewhere, there are not many of them. “While they are still at school they sometimes come with their parents, but less and less afterwards. Their friends are English, they rather keep to their own kind,”—explains the Rev. Sándor Varga. “We held children’s services once a month, offering Hungarian language classes, for about ten years, starting with the early seventies. Sometimes there were more teachers, than children. There would be children to teach even now, but the scatter of the congregation covers a growing area. Even if young people succeed to get a job in London after leaving school they find accommodation further and further away and only on the fringes of this city.” And it is also mainly the older who need divine services in Hungarian, people, who learnt mostly just enough English to get by on the job, butdid not make much headway in conversation, let alone the language of prayers and psalms. ISTVÁN BALÁZS Cserey into de Charay “Elizabeth de Charay, this is my name in English. I reshaped my family name, since English-speaking people found it too difficult to pronounce the Hungarian Cserey. I regret this now, but in the past eight years, which I spent on the English stage, I became known under this name. Many people think that I am French or Swiss.” '''Which was the first play in which you appeared?” “My first appearence was in Brecht’s One-act Plays. I was a young Servant girl in one, and an old servant in the other. 1 was straight out of Strassberg’s acting school, and suffered terribly of stage-fright. One day, when I went into the theatre, everybody was there standing around me and congratulating me. But why? Haven’t you seen the review? No, I had not. 1 did not even know that a critic attended a performance. He slashed everybody, the director as well as the others, but brought me into the lime-light saying that l took fresh air with me in those small roles. Well, that made my day. Believe me.” ‘‘What was your first real leading role?” “It was a new Frankenstein story. The play, Off Broadway had a threeyear run. The gist of the story was that Frankenstein’s grand-son had created a perfect woman, because everybody before had created men always. Änd I was that perfect woman. Naturally, I was rather imperfect to begin with. It was a comedy, but a really good one.” ‘‘Which was your favourite role?” “I really loved this one, for I had to invent the whole character. Then I acted Catherine the Great many times. The audiences liked me as the Czarina. Bernard Shaw had a oneact play, which they developed for my sake. They filled it with music and dancing.'” ‘‘Let us go back a little further. You came out here, to America, as a girl. Did you speak any English?” “No, not a word. I started modelling, since I could not speak.” “When did you decide to become an actress?” “First I did modelling, then 1 was a showgirl in Las Vegas. I did not dance really; showgirl have to look good on stage and show a leg. I was in Frank Sinatra’s The Most Beautiful Women of the West. They simply hired me for that show. I did not know that I was also expected to dance. In fact, that was how I started. In the meantime I went through three marriages. After these marriages I realized that that life did not suit me. That was when I realized what 1 really wanted to do; what made me so restless before. This happened eleven years ago.” “So you decided to become an actress. People usually start by enrolling in a school of acting. What did you do?” “I was aware that I was no longer eighteen and that I had an accent, so I asked around to find out who was the best in that field. If they take me on they take me, if they don’t, they don’t. I set out three times — and I shied back. Whim T final-The number of Hungarians of the Calvinist faith living in Great Britain can only be guessed at. The Rev. Sándor Varga thinks there might be about 3,000 to 4,000 of them, including about 1,200 to 1,500 in "the broader catchment area of his own congregation which covers London and South-Eastern England, of whom some 350 participate in one way or another in the life of the congregation. The Hungarian Calvinist Church in England was formed in 1948 with one principal congregat ion and a few affiliated ones. Following Dr Lajos Nagybaezoni Nagy, Dr László Vatai and Ferenc Kovács, Sándor Varga, who was studying at the time in Utrecht, was invited to minister to them in 1951. Having entered his office, he acted as a travelling minister for many a long year, looking after the diaspora all the way from Southern England to Manchester. The majority in the early years consisted of women in domestic service who went to England in the late thirties, and people who moved to Great Britain from the prisoner of war camps of Germany and Austria. After 1956 number's swelled. “In the late fifties as many as five or six ministers of religion served amongst us” recalled Sándor Varga. “Then, when I was left on my own, I had to reorganize the work. The few hundred people with whom we are in touch, live in twenty-four minor centres. That means about 8 to 15 members in each district. Even to try to get everywhere only twice a year would bo beyond my resources and my strength. My brethren understand that it was far more easy for us if they visited me here, in London, where we also have a pleasant house of worship.” The house, in the presbytery of which we talked, was built as a studio in 1891. It is a noted building which frequently appears in books on art and architecture. It was purchased for the Hungarian Calvinist community in 1958 by the Inter-Church assistance service of the British Council of Churches and the Irish Presbyterian Church. After a few year of steady work to build the community the English sister-Church suggested to the SÁNDOR VARGA PHOTO BY ISTVÁN BALÁZS PHOTO BY PÉTER JÁNOS SÖS ly got there the director asked me what had I done before. I admitted that I worked on the stage, but not as a dramatic actress. I still got the role. Miska Bogáti tried his hand then with a Hungarian theatre. I got the leading role, that of Cecil, in the Blue Fox. I was a success there. So I told them, that I had already been on stage, but acting in Hungarian. They gave me a text to read. And they enrolled me. My teachers gave me encouragement. I was still at school, when I started on the Off Broadway run and as I said, I got my first parts in the Brecht plays.” ‘‘Films?” “I played minor, very minor roles. I am no film star. I played in a Woody Allen film.” “Which one?” “You know, the funny thing about Woody Allen is that one just acts and acts, but never knows what is the title of the film. If one is lucky, one is in the film, if not, then one is cut out. But I still love working for him. I adore him anyway.” “Have you seen yourself on screen?” “Yes, Í have, of course.” “How did you like yourself?” “Wery much, thank you.” “And did others like you as well?” “Yes, yes. But this is not really advantageous, for unfortunately in America they do not give you enough time to play about by, say, doing a role with black hair as well as with brown hair. When the actor appears, the character must be there already. I do not turn up at television casting when they are looking for a housewife for I would not get the role. Allegedly I am not the type. But I am still a domesticated woman.” “Are you really?” “Yes, when I have the time. Í just love cooking.” “What do you like cooking?” “My speciality is Székely gulyás. I did it once even on television. The reason was that they invited me there: that was when 1 was Frankenstein’s monster. There, in the television studio I cooked Székely gulyás in my Frankenstein make-up.” “Are you in touch with the theatres in Hungary?” “No. I don’t know a soul. I really began my career here.” BY PÉTER JÁNOS SÓS 30
