The Eighth Hungarian Tribe, 1984 (11. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)

1984-09-01 / 9. szám

A FEW WORDS ABOUT THE NATIONAL THEATRE IN HUNGARY

— by —

Dr. Victor IV. Molnár

The writing of this article was prompted by the remarks contained in the May 1984 issue of The Eighth Hungarian Tribe, by the managing editor Paul Pulitzer, who heads the bounteous and very informative special section for the American-Hungarian community in New Jersey. In his commentary entitled: A Few Words From The Editor, Mr. Pulitzer dealt with the appeal that the Hungarian World Federation made to Hungarians all over the world, for donations to help finance the cost of building a new home for the Hungarian National Theater. Mr. Pulitzer noted that “the appeal sparked an emergence of a controversial issue which has yet to be resolved to the satisfaction of all, and one which reveals deep-rooted convictions that are symptomatic of the divisiveness fracturing the solidarity of the American- Hungarian community in the United States.”

Although Mr. Pulitzer states that the Eighth Hungarian Tribe does not advocate in any way that the immigrant Hungarian or an American with Hungarian heritage should or should not respond to the appeal, Mr. Pulitzer was “disturbed by some of the reasons given for NOT donating to the fund”. He claims the reasons are “unrealistic”, and are in direct contradiction with the “nay sayers” obvious interest in and dedication towards the preservation of our Hungarian Heritage.”

I must disagree with Mr. Pulitzer on this point; the reasons are not unrealistic, when the complete background for the Hungarian National Theater is known, and most importantly, the ideo-political differences between Communism and the Free-world are acknowledged. I was born here in western Pennsylvania; my grandparents and parents made me quite aware of my Hungarian heritage, and at the same time, to be proud of what that heritage embraced. In my youth “hunky” was a yery derogatory term, but “sticks and stones may break my bones, but names will never hurt me”, was the counsel of my parents and grandparents. And although I had heard the terror stories of the conditions in Hungary, related by the 1956-ers, I gathered up courage to visit Hungary in 1964, because I simply wanted to know more about Hungary, its history, culture and people. At this point anything Hungarian fascinated me. Due to very favorable

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impressions, mainly by the people, I have traveled to Hungary several times since, even though I have no relatives in that country. Due to border changes after World War I, my Hungarian father emigrated from Romania, and my Hungarian mother emigrated from Czechoslovakia. My Sunday two-hour Hungarian Varieties radio program, which will observe its 25th anniversary this year, attests to the fact that I am willing to offer time, money and sweat with a minimum of ten hours per week in just the production, to offer a bit of Hungarian culture to the Hungarian communities here in southwestern Pennsylvania, southeastern Ohio and northern West Virginia. I celebrated America’s Bicentennial by bringing to McKeesport and the Pittsburgh area a 27-member Hungarian folk ensemble, gathered and brought to the United States by the Smithsonian Institute. They were here for five days on a person-to-person basis...I mention all this as background information to what follows.

As I stated above, the complete background of the Hungarian National Theater should be known! One of the beautiful baroque buildings pointed out by the proud Hungarian guide when I was sightseeing in Budapest in 1964 was the National Theater. The guide explained that the government had recently spent several million forints to repair and renovate this landmark of the city, which had been badly damaged in the war. It was one of the first major post-war reconstructions in Budapest. On a subsequent visit, I discovered the building gone! I was told several reasons for tearing down this cultural building: (1) the building was too old; (2) the building interfered with the crisscross traffic at this point of Budapest, the intersection of the Great Boulevard and Rakoczy Street, where the National Theater was located, had been considered for decades as the busiest point in Budapest; and (3) the building interefered with the construction of a subway station. The BIG RUMOR was, however, that during the construction of the subway station, the foundation of the theatre was undermined and the city fathers were forced to demolish the building. Otherwise, the safety of the public was endangered. Poor bureaucratic planning had eliminated the beautiful National Theater.

So now comes the question: why should

the Hungarians throughout the world pay for the bungling that was done in Budapest? Whichever reason one would choose (old age, traffic convenience or subway construction), the responsibility still goes back to bureaucracy. As Mr. Pulitzer wrote: IT IS A HARD FACT that, whether we like it or not, there is nothing we can do to change Hungary’s system of government. As you make your bed, so you must lie on it, says the old proverb.

The preservation of any heritage is primarily the responsibility of that nation. Now as to the Hungarian National Theater: it is located in Hungary and that is where the responsibility lies. We Americans, whether immigrant or native-born, who are justifiably proud of our Hungarian heritage, place our efforts in preserving “Hungarianism” within our own sphere. That’s why we have such things as The Eighth Hungarian Tribe and other Hungarian publications, Heritage conferences and symposiums, radio programs, as well as social and cultural events-we ARE preserving our Hungarian heritage here. We are “gung ho” for things Hungarian, in our own land. By pursueing this, what matter of reasoning positions us against the land and people from which it originated? If we did absolutely nothing, that would manifest our nonconcern and apathy towards our heritage and Hungarianism.

Mr. Pulitzer errs when he writes: When we voice opinions contrary to our own government’s policy, we are out of step with reality. The United States is a free government of the people, where it is our duty to voice opinion and concerns where government is involved. Hungary does not have this type of government. There the everyday man on the street must agree with the policies of the government. If he does not, he is charged with treason. IT IS A HARD FACT that a new generation has come of age in Hungary, and there IS little desire for change. International amnesty, headquartered in London, underground publications plus secret police activities all confirm the fact that opinions, contrary to the official line, exist in Hungary today.

The pros and cons of donating to help finance the cost of a new Hungarian National Theater in Budapest still remains with each individual who must make the ultimate decision, whether on an emotional or rational basis.

Eighth Hungarian Tribe