Eternal Kalotaszeg

In memory of Ferenc “Gummy Eyes” Varga

The show summarizes twenty-five years in the history of the Hungarian “dance house” movement. The “everlasting” memories of personal experiences gained during the collection and notation of folk music and dance are brought to life on the stage as three great recollective experiences.

The first evokes an idyllic image of village life, with girls in traditional dress going to church on Sunday morning and performing ritual dances before the church. The second revives a socially cohesive custom, the “sheep allotment”, which involved the gathering of the village elders to form a council, which imposed strict, but universally respected rules on the allocations of milk for different uses. The third vision represents the world of the musicians. Passed down from father to son, it would be hard to imagine communal existence or dance without the skills of the musicians, who – due to their self-destructive lifestyles – lived rather short lives.  As in other areas, it was their music that brought people together in the community of Kalotaszeg, and warmed the hearts of Romanians, Hungarians, and Gypsies alike.

The dance vision of Zoltán Farkas is accompanied by the music of László Kelemen; this music is a selection of tunes from the repertoire of the Varga family, a virtuoso musical family from Bánffyhunyad who are nicknamed the “The Gummy Eyes”.

Video is available: please click here