Debrecen4U September 10, 2025

The Csokonai National Theater became the first rural cultural strategic institution

The Csokonai National Theate hosted the National Theater Season Opening.

“Culture—Common voice, separate paths?“ Common space, common future, theater above all”—this is the motto of the National Theater Season Opening, which was hosted by Debrecen this year. At the event, it was announced that the Csokonai National Theater became the first rural cultural strategic institution.

Dániel Vadász, the acting director of the theater, said that “The additional resources associated with the appointment provide an opportunity, among other things, for salary development and an increase in the production budget, and it will probably be possible to integrate this additional resource so that the productions simply become larger in scale with greater momentum and a larger budget. The other area, an area that is particularly important to me, is the area of ​​cooperation.”

Mayor László Papp emphasized in connection with the special status that the title of cultural strategic institution is extremely inspiring, as it fits in with the vision of Debrecen, which serves not only the Eastern Hungarian region but also Hungarians living beyond the surrounding borders. “In the case of Debrecen, which is in the phase of changing scale, we are trying to take the path of changing scale in terms of culture as well. I believe that with this decision and the expanding financing opportunities, the Debrecen Csokonai National Theatre can become a much more frequented, popular, and sought-after theatre,” he said.

“Last year, around 7.3 million people bought tickets to a performance at one of the Hungarian theaters,” minister responsible for culture and innovation Balázs Hankó spoke about this at the national season opening. He emphasized that supporting culture is important for the government, as Hungarian culture transcends borders and connects the entire Hungarian nation. “The Hungarian government is spending twice the average amount of European Union funding on financing Hungarian culture, and it does so in such a way that in the case of each theater performance, the support provided by the government is HUF 15 per theater ticket,” the minister said.

At the National Theater Season Opening, domestic representatives of the profession discussed the social role and future of theater through presentations and roundtable discussions. The gala evening, which concludes the all-day program, will be held on Wednesday evening at the Csokonai Theater.

Source and photo credit: debrecen.hu