The Baltazar Theatre , founded in February 1998, is the one and only professional theatre company in Hungary whose members are mentally challenged actors and actresses. The Baltazar Theatre Foundation, which runs the theatre company, breaks new ground by putting actors’ disabilities in the background and emphasizing their talent.We create the conditions for disabled people to earn a living from their talent. Our work is based on the ambition that our pieces should not be prepared and presented in social exclusion. The performances should not be judged by a relative standard but by their own values.
Since we were set up, the company has presented ten pieces:
- 1998 – Awakenings
- 2000 – Feather Dance
- 2001 – Think of me with pleasures
- 2002 – Beckett Symphony
- 2003 – Flying Licence – for Angels
- 2004 – Fading Rouge
- 2005 – The One Born Laughing
- 2007 - "Picasso: The Creation of the World"
- 2008 - Stone Choice
- 2009 - Boys, girls
The company, through its operation, would like to establish a culture that offers disabled people the possibility for social integration. Its ultimate aim is to ensure that social judgement of disabled people changes. The company wants to attract the widest audience possible. Besides regular theatregoers they would like to involve people who do not go to the theatre but whose social sensitivity is aroused by the performances of the Balatazar Theatre.
We started our educational programme in 1999 through which we introduced a completely new approach. Further education is still unresolved for people with special needs. It is not possible to choose from trades or educational institutions. There was no high standard art education available other than art therapy.
The training programme was exclusively available for the actors of the Baltazar Theatre until September 2005, when we opened up to the public and started our integrated art training programme.
The list of professionals that have worked or are now working for us is as follows:
Pál Regős - movement acting, Franciska Győry – speech technique - Katalin Taligás - singing, Dr. Lászlóné Gálik - yoga, Gabriella Nagy – yoga, Zoltán Ascher – yoga, Dóra Elek – acting, András Békefi - tai-chi, Lajos Vass - contemporary dance, Andrea Földi- costume and clothing history, Szilvia Virág - masks, Gabriella Bánki - lighting design, Gretchen Meddaugh - English language, Mari Sipiczki – English language, Attila Draskóczy - cultural antrophology, József Kerekes - rythmic folkdance, Szilvia Granasztói - puppetry, Anita Krista – puppetry, Márk Bubnó – singing, Eszter Tajti – arts, Kata Juhász – dance, Miklós Visontai – acrobatics, Gergely Csima – self-defence, Andrea Simányi – violin, György Felföldi – singing, Júlia Garai – ballet, Andrea Mészöly – contemporary dance. In the framework of courses, Hungarian as well as foreign guest teachers (Tadashi Endo - butoh dance, French artists) participate in the training.
The theatre plays a key role in getting disabled people accepted, it is a way for the mentally disabled to get integrated in the society.
The Baltazar Theatre Foundation feels it his duty to inform the whole of society and develop a notion about the disabled society free from prejudices. People can be primarily affected by feelings – by art. We have high standard performances to reach the desired effect.