Bányai Balázs - Kovács Eleonóra (szer.): A"Zichy-expedíció"- Szent István Király Múzeum közleményei. A. sorozat 48. (Székesfehérvár, 2013)
The "Zichy Expedition"
204 THE “ZICHY EXPEDITION IN THE SERVICE OF THALIA It is unknown if Zichy’s suggestion had anything to do with it or if the thought had already been there but at the end of June 1860 the Association for the Support of Theatrical Affairs of Székesfehérvár was founded. It had the goal of raising the basic funds to support theatrical performances and later the establishment of a permanent theatre in Székesfehérvár. It was supported by the Casino of Székesfehérvár and from 1867 by the Vörösmarty Circle.87 In November 1969 the directors of the Circle turned to the Town Assembly with the request to found a permanent theatre. The Assembly gave its support to the Vörösmarty Circle and soon secured a building site next to the Zichy Palace, known as Hotel Magyar Király.88 At the same time, the Theatre Corporation of Székesfehérvár was established as the owner of the theatre.89 Its president, lord-lieutenant László Szőgyény-Marich turned to the public of the county and the town to contribute the necessary funds for the construction. Seeing the nicely accumulating stocks, the corporation elected its directorship, with Jenő Zichy as member.90 The plans of the theatre were designed by the architects Antal Szkalnitzky and Henrik Koch, both from Pest.91 After some new appeals for donation, the cornerstone was laid down during a ceremony on 20th August 1872.92 The theatre was opened two years later on 22nd August, with the play Bánk bán by József Katona. Many actors of the National Theatre including Róza Jókai-Laborfalvy played.93 However, after the glorious and successful opening, the theatre was frequented only by few and the always changing theatre groups faced financial problems in the next two years.94 The only exceptions to this period were the performances of Lujza Blaha, which always attracted huge crowds. Seeing the difficulities, the town’s noblemen worked together and, with the help of a consortium called Association of Theatresupport, leased the theatre, improved the level of the guest theatre groups and increased the number of spectators. The members of the organization led by mayor József Havranek, with Jenő Zichy, Imre Fiáth and Imre Miske, donated a substantial sum of their own private fortune to the Association in order to employ adequate theatre groups.95 In 1876 Jenő Zichy became a member and leader of the corporation’s financial department.96 The changes brought success in the first two seasons but despite the anewed success of Lujza Blaha, guest plays of well-known theatre groups and the increased interests during the national exhibition in 1879, the theatrical scene of Székesfehérvár was in constant decline. The theatre was saved from financial ruin by the loans through Jenő Zichy in the early 1880s. The theatre group received, among others, a loan of 22 000 forints from the income of the national exhibition in 1879, and 10 000 forints from the National Industry Association. Both loans were supposed to be reimbursed in 15 years.97
