FROM RICSE TO HOLLYWOOD AND BACK

Born on January 7, 1873 in the small town of Ricse in NE Hungary, Adolph Zukor’s is a real rags-to-riches story of the American dream. At the age of 7, he moved to the nearby city of Mátészalka, where he spent his formative years and finished his studies before emigrating to the U.S. at 15 with, legend says, only USD 25 cash in his pocket. Adolph Zukor first worked as a cleaner, then apprenticed at a furrier. In time, he became co-owner of the Novelty Fur Company. Throughout the years, he invested in various theaters and he eventually began to work with famous actors to produce feature films. He then founded Paramount Pictures in 1912 with two of his partners.

‘Father of the feature film’

Adolph Zukor has tangible signs of his success in the country he adopted as his new home. Having played a major part in Hollywood film history, he has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Often called the ‘father of the feature film in America,” he also received an Honorary Award in 1949 from the Academy Awards for ”his services to the industry over a period of forty years.”

Adolph

Zukor Memorial House

The Hungarian-American film pioneer never forgot his roots. In the 1920s, he regularly sent care packages and money back to Hungary to those who asked for his help in handwritten letters. He supported the development and urban planning of his hometown by financing the building of a school and a well, the renovation of a church and several other important public buildings among the many projects he has done to better his birthplace. Not surprisingly, Zukor’s memory is highly cherished in his hometown, where he has a cult following of people taking pride in the fact that he hails from their town. To further conserve his legacy, the Municipality of Ricse and the Hungarian Hollywood Council celebrated the 150th anniversary of Zukor’s birth with the inauguration of the Adolph Zukor Memorial House of Ricse on January 7, 2023. The Memorial House is located in the building where Zukor was born. The President and CEO of Paramount Pictures, Brian Robbins, sent an official greeting to the participants. The President of the Hungarian Hollywood Council, Balázs Bokor expressed his conviction that Zukor – at last – received proper recognition in Hungary with a world-class memorial house Ricse and the whole country can be proud of.

Bart K Spring

MARCH 31 – APRIL 16, MÜPA PALACE OF ARTS, BUDAPEST

Launched in the spring of 2021, on the 140th anniversary of the birth of the world famous Hungarian composer, Béla Bartók, the Bartók Spring International Arts Weeks is a unique event series dedicated to the arts. While offering insights into his fascinating oeuvre, the festival does not restrict itself to the work of the composer, and seeks instead to represent Bartók’s spirit, creativity and outlook in countless genres, from contemporary classical music through world music, jazz and dance to visual art and pop music – the creations of the best international and Hungarian artists. The event series seeks, in cooperation with Hungarian and European partner institutions, to make Hungary an even more attractive destination for cultural tourism in the coming years. Presented by Müpa Budapest, the Bartók Spring is hoped to gradually grow into a national, even regional, event series, which engages other major institutions of culture and cities to offer a program that is as rich and colorful as possible.

One spectacular event promises to be by one of the most passionate flamenco dancers of our time, Sara Baras who will pit up a blood-pumping performance, the organizers say. With her sumptuous costumes, the pulsating rhythms of flamenco and the overwhelming power of live music, Alma (Soul) invites audiences to a thrilling encounter with the 'Queen of Flamenco'. mupa.hu

MÜPA 2023: RETURNING WORLD STARS

JANUARY-FEBRUARY

MÜPA PALACE OF ARTS, BUDAPEST

The great lady of fado, Mariza, and the grand master of Balkan virtuosity, Goran Bregović, will return to Müpa in the first months of 2023, but Zoli Beck and Krisztián Grecsó will also present their new albums here, as will László Kollár-Klemencz, while Hungarian jazz legend Attila László will celebrate his round jubilee with the audience. One of the outstanding performers is László Kollár-Klemencz, who works consciously in the fields of literature and music, founded a chamber orchestra to highlight his more melancholic side, with three further albums also recorded. Folyó [‘River’] is the Kollár-Klemencz Chamber Orchestra's fifth album, and is a conscious continuation of their work, with each record going to new depths in every sense. For this presentation of the new album, the audience will see a mature group - both in modern and classical music - taking to the stage: classical music, folk music and world music performers that over the years have become fully adapted to the constant alterations of the band leader, who is forever seeking out new paths. mupa.hu

$UICIDEBOY$

MARCH 23, MVM DOME, BUDAPEST New Orleans rap duo $uicideboy$ announced last year that their highly-successful Grey Day Tour would be coming to Europe to play 15 dates across nine countries in 2023. G59 Records artists Germ, Shakewell, Chetta and US Grey Day Tour opener Ski Mask The Slump God will be on the line-up as support acts. $uicideboy$ were reported to have a stellar 2022 as the 27th most-streamed artist of the year across all genres, according to HITS MAGAZINE, beating other rappers on the list including Jack Harlow, Tyler the Creator and Travis Scott. Additionally, their 2022 single ‘Matte Black’ was at the top spot of Spotify’s US Top Groups of 2022 playlist, a collection of the most-streamed artists on the platform this year. The tour announcement came alongside a final release of their three-part collaborative EP with Germ DIRTIESTNASTIEST$UICIDE, a seven-song collection of all new music produced entirely by $uicideboy$ member $crim. livenation.hu

Depeche Mode

JULY 28, BUDAPEST ARENA

Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Class of 2020 inductees Depeche Mode announced that they will be releasing a new album and embarking on a world tour in 2023. The Memento Mori Tour will support the band’s forthcoming 15th studio album, Memento Mori, due out in Spring 2023.

In a break from tradition, the tour will begin with a special, limited series of North American arena dates starting March 23rd, before the band heads to Europe for their summer stadium tour from May 16th. The Memento Mori Tour will be Depeche Mode’s 19th tour and their first in over five years. The band’s most recent outing, the 2017-2018 Global Spirit Tour was its longest to date and was one of the year’s highest grossing tours, with the band playing to more than 3 million fans over the course of 130 shows across Europe and North America. Having sold more than 100 million records and played to more than 35 million fans worldwide, Depeche Mode remains an ever-evolving and singularly influential musical force, which continues to forge ahead, with the Memento Mori album and tour representing the opening of the newest chapter of a peerless and ongoing legacy. livenation.hu