Szeged Open-Air Festival (Szegedi Szabadteri Jatekok)

The Szeged Open-Air Festival is Hungary's largest 'open-air theatre' event. This festival with a tradition stretching back over 75 years is held annually in July and August. The programmes primarily comprise of music and dance performances.

The festival is the most visited summer cultural event in the region. The unique nature of the theatre performances is enhanced by world premieres and the internationally ranked performances staged within the festival - and, last but not least, by the spectacular stage with the Szeged Cathedral as the backdrop and unique stage 'scene'. Several tens of thousands of guests come to enjoy the events on Dome Square and the Újszeged Open-Air Stage each year, many from abroad.

Over the last 75 years, the following pieces have attracted the largest audiences: the opera Aida, the operetta Gypsy Queen (Csárdáskirálynő), the musical Rudolf - an international co-production - and the Hungarian national opera Ban Bán staged with a novel conception and with world famous artists.

The open-air free concerts at night and the exhibition on the history of the festival are among the enticing and fascinating additional events.

The idea for the festival first came from the Szeged poet Gyula Juhász in 1926. The 'dress rehearsal' was held in the autumn of 1930 as part of the series of festive events for the consecration of the votive church. Surrounded by a row of arcades, the excellent acoustics of Dome Square made it an ideal location for open-air performances, the first of which was on the 13th June 1931. From then on the open-air performances were organised each summer as one of Szeged's main attractions. In 1994, a new auditorium was built for the festival. The stand that once occupied the square all year round was changed to a 4,000-seat mobile auditorium set up only during the festival. Over three million people have visited the 657 performances of the 142 pieces shown at the festival over its 40-year history.