At the beginning of the 1980s, Tibor Zalán burst through the door of contemporary Hungarian literature without knocking, at the head of a young generation that wanted something different. He was free and he was terrifically talented, with no regard for any rules, norms, prevailing tastes or conventions: the overwhelming energy of the avant-garde permeated his mould-breaking, experimental and visual verse. As his career subsequently blossomed, it quickly became clear that there was an emotional heart beating behind his unquenchably innovative spirit. Republished this year in a four-language volume, the free-flowing, beautiful elegies of és néhány akvarell (1986) throw light upon the other aspect of Zalán’s poetry with the elemental, penetrating power of an artist who plays by his own rules.
The duality of the consummate Zalán lyricism assumed its immediately recognisable, incomparable character in a subsequent 20-odd volumes of verse, while his essays, radio plays, dramas and books of children’s stories, as well as a three-volume cycle of novels (Papírváros, 1998, 2002, 2013) revealed the diversity of his oeuvre to an ever-expanding readership. Zalán has a headstrong, uncompromising temperament, beating his own path since his very first verse went to print regardless of changing trends and fleeting fashions in contemporary literature. It is perhaps this that makes his distinctive, wide-ranging and rich career ring so indisputably, convincingly true. Zalán’s evening on the Literarium stage, accompanied by two, similarly free-spirited and independent musician, promises to be an exceptional experience and a memorable encounter.

Presented by: Müpa Budapest