Deputy Mayor of Debrecen István Puskás said that the most important event in Debrecen’s cultural life in 2023 will be the inauguration of the renewed Csokonai Theatre, which a new director will head this year.
He stressed that the most important aspect of this year’s budget was to provide cultural diversity for the people of Debrecen.
He noted that the number of users of the Méliusz Juhász Péter Library is steadily increasing, the Csokonai Fórum performances are sold out, and those who visited the Déri Museum on 22nd of January, Hungarian Culture Day, could experience the importance of keeping culture alive in the city.
He stressed that the city of Debrecen had made a very important commitment in the field of cultural institutions, which is reflected in the fact that the twenty percent wage increase provided by the state is accompanied by an additional fifteen percent wage increase for the entire cultural institutions.
Culture is kept alive by large institutions and companies and the many communities that make up the culture of Debrecen. This year’s budget will continue to focus on those communities. The forms of support – civil fund, cultural fund, youth fund – that have accompanied and supported the life of Debrecen’s communities for many years will, of course, be available this year, too, he said.
The traditional cooperation projects will continue this year, which are in common with the University of Debrecen and serve the cultural life of the city and the university students, and the support for the summer university will remain unchanged, he added.
Support for the popular music scene will also be available this year, with a special focus on the sixtieth anniversary of rock music in Debrecen, he said, adding that a competition will be launched in connection with this, and the municipality will also support Made in Debrecen, which will be held for the second time.
Speaking about literature, the deputy mayor said they would like to continue building the Magda Szabó cult in the city, but they will further expand the Friends of the Book network, which was launched last year and has more than 50 members.
This year is the 200th anniversary of Petőfi, the 250th anniversary of Csokonai, and the 60th anniversary of Szilárd Borbély, so the network members have been asked to develop projects to reach out to the city’s residents and bring these authors to life, he added.
István Puskás also mentioned that the Kodály Philharmonic is celebrating its 100th birthday this year, so they are preparing a series of concerts from the beginning of spring.
Theatre life will also be livened up as the Theatre Olympics begin in mid-May, and Debrecen will become a real festival city.
