Everybody in Hungary knows Árpád Tóth. Everybody knows that there is a promenade name after him in the Buda Castle district. We remember 'from breath to breath' and 'a tie for a purple song'. Most Hungarians are also aware he was overly sensitive and died young from an issue with his lungs. Art Nouveau, melancholia - these are the words that spring to mind. But do we have only that? And if that is all we have, is it only? Though that would be enough in itself, there is more. Árpád Tóth is a vibrantly exciting intellectual phenomenon, and was also one of, if not the greatest, Hungarian translator of poetry. With Tóth's translation, Verlaine's Chanson d'automne became a Hungarian poem. Behind the voice of Art Nouveau, Tóth also displayed a factual, incredibly precise view and poetic regard for the world and himself.
In this compilation, we strive to present the poet's diversity, dispel the legend of his one-dimensional nature, and, in addition to the resonance of that bittersweet chord, to present the other shades and tones from his artistic career. The poetic verse of the patient, struggling with death on the magic mountain of the Hungarians, the poignancy of the Tátra Mountains with not a single sound forgotten. Though we won't only journey to mountainous peaks: a later poem was entitled A Marson (On Mars). It seems that he wrote the first sci-fi poem in the history of Hungarian literature. It turns out that Tóth's boldness often rivals that of Karinthy.
If you are looking for the more familiar side of Árpád Tóth, you will not be disappointed, but if you are looking for a poetic voice that remains relevant for today's poetry and world you will also find joy. You must disappoint those dim memories, for there are far more extensive horizons, depths and heights to be found in Árpád Tóth's poetry than his literary reputation would have us believe.

The production's cooperating partner is the University of Theatre and Film Arts.

Presented by: Müpa Budapest