Melancholy, rich in sentiment, shot through with subtle humour, Darvasi creates a literary world that at times flows along a meandering riverbed of classic literature, and is at other times akin to a crime thriller, featuring twists and turns but also forever eager to seek out answers to the current fundamental questions of our existence, whether he is transporting the reader to ancient times or make-believe lands, all with the help of his incomparably rich literary imagination. Ever since the A veinhageni rózsabokrok (The Rose Bushes of Veinhagen, 1993), Darvasi has been one of the most significant Hungarian masters of the traditional short story format, while his Magical Realism-infused novels (A könnymutatványosok legendája, The Legend of the Tearful, 1999, Virágzabálók, Flower Eaters, 2009) paint a historical panorama of 16th-17th-century and then 19th-century Europe, featuring Hungarian locations dear to the writer (Szeged, Buda). Wherever this highly prolific, popular and versatile writer guides his reader, all of his works are permeated by the cult of the story, the boundless reverence for the written word, and his unwavering belief that the world can be retold through the tools of fiction and delicately woven, poetic sentences. It is no exaggeration to say that few people in today's Hungarian literature can tell a story quite like this. On the occasion of Darvasi's 60th birthday, Darvasi's renowned peers (Lajos Parti Nagy, Pál Závada, László Szilasi) will greet the author with texts and parodies written for the occasion, while some superb actors will interpret his writings. The musical accompaniment will be provided by the band of his famous son, Áron Darvasi.
Kultúrkör is one of Hungary's most promising pop-rap groups. The three-person band from Szeged was formed in 2020 during the first wave of Covid, when lockdown inspired the three lads to start writing songs together. Each member of the group has an engaging character. Áron Darvasi is an actor and director, Tamás Király studied law, while Barnabás Rudner helps children with special needs as a special education teacher.
The band has released several songs to great acclaim over the last year, and they also wrote the scripts for their highly entertaining and creative self-made music videos. Last year, the trio conquered Hungarian radio with the song Siker (Success), appeared on the main stage at the SZIN festival and also reached the mentor house on Hungarian X-Factor. And thanks to their addictive party anthem Maradunk fiatalok (We Stay Young) Kultúrkör also received an invitation to the Petőfi Music Award party!

Presented by: Müpa Budapest