Proton Theatre is an independent company based in

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...

. It was founded in 2009 and is operating according to the production concept shaped by

Kornél Mundruczó Kornél Mundruczó (; born 3 April 1975) is a Hungarian film and theatre director. He has directed 18 short and feature films between 1998 and 2020. His film ''Johanna'' was screened in the Un Certain Regard section of the 2005 Cannes Film Fest ...

(film and theatre director) and Dóra Büki (theatre producer). The virtual artistic group is organized around the director's independent productions.

History

Mundruczó has worked in the theatre field since 2003. During his career, he has developed a unique working method, already put to use in 2007 with his piece '' Frankenstein-project'' at Bárka Theatre. This highly acclaimed work was to be the Proton Theatre's founding production. It convinced him of the need for a “base”, where he could work freely with his own company. Theatre producer Dóra Büki devised the organisation's operational structure to ensure the long runs of their performances. Thus, in 2009, the Proton Theatre was born. Besides preserving maximum artistic freedom, their goal is to provide a professional framework for their independently produced theatre plays and projects. Chiefly, their performances are realized as international co-productions, and their frequent collaborators include the

Vienna Festival __NOTOC__ The Wiener Festwochen (Vienna Festival) is a cultural festival in Vienna that takes place every year for five or six weeks in May and June. The Wiener Festwochen was established in 1951, when Vienna was still occupied by the four Allie ...

; HAU Hebbel am Ufer, Berlin; Kunstenfestivaldesarts, Brussels; Trafó House of Contemporary Arts, Budapest; and

HELLERAU Hellerau is a northern quarter ''(Stadtteil)'' in the city of Dresden, Germany, slightly south of Dresden Airport. It was the first garden city in Germany. The northern section of Hellerau absorbed the village of Klotzsche, where some 18th cent ...

, Dresden. Besides productions directed by the artistic leader – namely, '' The Ice'' (2006), ''Frankenstein-project'' (2007), ''

Hard to be a God ''Hard to Be a God'' (russian: Трудно быть богом, translit=''Trudno byt' bogom'') is a 1964 science-fiction novel by the Soviet writers Arkady and Boris Strugatsky, set in the Noon Universe. Premise and themes The novel follow ...

'' (2010), ''

Disgrace ''Disgrace'' is a novel by J. M. Coetzee, published in 1999. It won the Booker Prize. The writer was also awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature four years after its publication. Plot David Lurie is a white South African professor of English wh ...

'' (2012), ''

Dementia Dementia is a disorder which manifests as a set of related symptoms, which usually surfaces when the brain is damaged by injury or disease. The symptoms involve progressive impairments in memory, thinking, and behavior, which negatively affe ...

'' (2013), ''

Winterreise ''Winterreise'' (, ''Winter Journey'') is a song cycle for voice and piano by Franz Schubert ( D. 911, published as Op. 89 in 1828), a setting of 24 poems by German poet Wilhelm Müller. It is the second of Schubert's two song cycles on Müller' ...

'' (2015), '' Imitation of life'' (2016), ''The Raft of the Medusa'' (2018) and ''Evolution'' (2019) – they wish to provide space for the realisation of the company members’ ideas. In this spirit, the following performances were created: ''Last'' (2014), directed by Roland Rába, ''1 link'' (2015), directed by Gergely Bánki, and ''Finding Quincy'' by János Szemenyei. Their co-producers are among the most prestigious festivals and theatres. On their first international co-production, ''Hard to be a God'', the main co-producer was Kunstenfestivaldesarts, on their second, ''Disgrace'', the Vienna Festival, on their third, ''Dementia'', HAU Hebbel am Ufer, and Vienna Festival again on their fourth. Their constant partner in Hungary is Trafó House of Contemporary Arts. Proton Theatre performances have toured more than 110 festivals over the years – from

Festival d’Avignon The ''Festival d'Avignon'', or Avignon Festival, is an annual arts festival held in the French city of Avignon every summer in July in the courtyard of the Palais des Papes as well as in other locations of the city. Founded in 1947 by Jean Vi ...

and the

Adelaide Festival The Adelaide Festival of Arts, also known as the Adelaide Festival, an arts festival, takes place in the South Australian capital of Adelaide in March each year. Started in 1960, it is a major celebration of the arts and a significant cultural ...

to the

Singapore International Festival of Arts Singapore International Festival of Arts (SIFA) is an annual arts festival held in Singapore. It is organised bArts House Limitedfor the National Arts Council. The festival is usually held in mid-year for a stretch of one month and incorporates th ...

, the Seoul Bo:m Festival, and the

Zürcher Theater Spektakel The Zürcher Theater Spektakel (''Zürich Theatre Spectacle'') is an international theatre and performing arts festival, held annually each summer in Zürich, Switzerland. First held in 1980, the festival invites 20-25 different performing arts g ...

. In 2017 their performance ''Imitation of life'' was nominated for the Faust Award for Mundruczó's outstanding directorial achievement. It was the first time in the history of this award that a non-German theatre was nominated.

Productions

The Seven Deadly Sins/Motherland

Kornél Mundruczó has paired his production of ''

The Seven Deadly Sins The seven deadly sins is a classification of vices used in Christian teachings. Seven deadly sins may also refer to: Art * ''The Seven Deadly Sins and the Four Last Things'', a 1485 painting by Hieronymus Bosch * '' The Seven Deadly Sins of Moder ...

'' with the drama ''Motherland'', which explores the subjects of capitalist exploitation and the exercise of power in a family of the present day.

Evolution

Based on György Ligeti's Requiem the world premier of Kornél Mundruczó and Proton Theatre lies on the boundary of concert and theatre and analyses the theme of repetition. ;Festival invitations * Ruhrtriennale 2019. Bochum, Germany

The Raft of the Medusa

The Raft of the Medusa, an oratory by Hans Werner Henze, was inspired by

Théodore Géricault Jean-Louis André Théodore Géricault (; 26 September 1791 – 26 January 1824) was a French painter and lithographer, whose best-known painting is ''The Raft of the Medusa''. Although he died young, he was one of the pioneers of the Romantic ...

's famous painting by the same name from 1819. Directed by Kornél Mundruczó, this installation of the Proton Theatre aimed to tell the story of The Raft of the Medusa – one that is universally valid and spans different eras – from a unique perspective. ;Festival invitations * Ruhrtriennale 2018. Bochum, Germany

Finding Quincy

Imitation of life

;Festival invitations * Vienna Festival 2016. Vienna, Austria * Theater Oberhausen 2016. Germany * Wiesbaden Biennale 2016. Germany * HELLERAU - European Center for the Arts 2016. Dresden, Germany * HAU Hebbel am Ufer 2016. Berlin, Germany * NEXT Festival 2016. Lille, France * Platonov Arts Festival 2017. Voronezh, Russia * 17th National Theatre Festival 2017. Pécs, Hungary * Festival Boulevard 2017. 's-Hertogenbosch, The Netherlands * Zürcher Theater Spektakel 2017. Switzerland * Baltic House Festival 2017. Saint Petersburg, Russia * Sirenos Festival 2017. Vilnius, Lithuania * Spring in Autumn 2017. Utrecht, The Netherlands * Łaźnia Nowa Teatr 2017. Cracow, Poland * TR Warszawa 2017. Warsaw, Poland * dunaPart4 - Platform of Contemporary Hungarian Performing Arts 2017. Budapest, Hungary * Lessingtage 2018. Thalia Theater Hamburg, Germany * MC93 2018. Bobigny, France * Théâtre de Vidy 2018. Lausanne, Switzerland * Maillon 2018. Strasbourg, France * Alkantara Festival 2018. Lisbon, Portugal * Athens Festival 2018. Greece * Theaterfestival Basel 2018. Switzerland * 26th International Festival Theatre 2018. Pilsen, Czech Republic * CDN Orléans 2018. France * VIE Festival 2019. Bologna, Italy * MESS International Theatre Festival 2019. Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina * FIT Festival 2019. Lugano, Switzerland ;Award: *Best scenery: Márton Ágh - Hungarian Theatre Critics' Association *Best writing and dramaturgy:

Kata Wéber Kata Wéber is a Hungarian screenwriter, playwright and former actress who often works with her husband, director Kornél Mundruczó. Wéber wrote '' White God'' (2014), '' Jupiter's Moon'' (2017) and ''Pieces of a Woman'' (2020). Career Kata W� ...

and Soma Boronkay - 17th National Theatre Festival 2017. Pécs, Hungary *Best scenery: Márton Ágh - 17th National Theatre Festival 2017. Pécs, Hungary *Audience Award - Baltic House Festival 2017. Saint Petersburg, Russia

Winterreise

;Festival invitations * ''"Fremd bin ich..."'' Classical Music Festival - Mousonturm 2017. Frankfurt am Main, Germany * HAU Hebbel am Ufer 2017. Berlin, Germany * HELLERAU - European Center for the Arts 2018. Dresden, Germany * Wiener Festwochen 2018. Vienna, Austria * Mittelfest 2018. Cividale del Friuli, Italy * Maillon 2019. Strasbourg, France

1 link

Since January 2019, the Katona József Theatre’s "Sufni" (Shed) Studio has hosted the performance based on the award-winning cyber novel written under a pseudonym. ;Festival invitations * National Theatre of Pécs 2016. Pécs, Hungary

Last

;Festival invitations * National Theatre of Pécs 2015. Pécs, Hungary * Jászai Mari Theatre 2016.

Tatabánya Tatabánya (; german: Totiserkolonie; sk, Banská Stará) is a City with county rights, city with county rights of 64,305 inhabitants in northwestern Hungary, in the Central Transdanubian region. It is the capital of Komárom-Esztergom County. L ...

, Hungary * National Theatre of Szeged 2017. Szeged, Hungary

Dementia

;Festival invitations * SPIELART Festival 2013.

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...

, Germany * Novart Festival 2013. Théâtre National de Bordeaux en Aquitaine, France * HELLERAU - European Center for the Arts 2014. Dresden, Germany * HAU Hebbel am Ufer 2014. Berlin, Germany * Maria Matos Teatro Municipal 2014. Lisboa, Portugal * Nová Dráma Festival 2014.

Bratislava Bratislava (, also ; ; german: Preßburg/Pressburg ; hu, Pozsony) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Slovakia. Officially, the population of the city is about 475,000; however, it is estimated to be more than 660,000 — approxim ...

, Slovakia * New Plays from Europe 2014. Mousonturm, Frankfurt am Main, Germany * Noorderzon Performing Arts Festival 2014. Groningen, The Netherlands * Festival De Keuze 2014. Rotterdamse Schouwburg, The Netherlands * Baltic House Festival 2014. Saint Petersburg, Russia * NET Festival 2014. Moscow, Russia * Automne en Normandie 2014. Evreux, France * NEXT Festival 2014. Lille, France * Nervöse Systeme 2014. Schauspielhaus Zürich, Switzerland * Lessingtage 2015. Thalia Theater,

Hamburg (male), (female) en, Hamburger(s), Hamburgian(s) , timezone1 = Central (CET) , utc_offset1 = +1 , timezone1_DST = Central (CEST) , utc_offset1_DST = +2 , postal ...

, Germany * dunaPart3 - Platform of Contemporary Hungarian Performing Arts 2015. Budapest, Hungary * Singapore International Festival of Arts 2015. Singapore * International Theatre Forum TEART 2016. Minsk, Belarus * Theatre World Brno 2017. Czech Republic ;Award: * Critics’ Award - Baltic House Festival 2014. Saint Petersburg, Russia

Disgrace

;Festival invitations * Vienna Festival 2012. Vienna, Austria * KunstenFestivalDesArts 2012. Brussels, Belgium * Malta Festival 2012. Poznan, Poland * Festival d’Avignon 2012. France * HAU Hebbel am Ufer 2012. Berlin, Germany * Romaeuropa Festival 2012.

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

, Italy * Hungarian Showcase 2013. Budapest, Hungary * National Theatre of Pécs 2013. Pécs, Hungary * 13th National Theatre Festival 2013. Pécs, Hungary * Tampere Theatre Festival 2013. Finland * Züricher Theater Spektakel 2013. Switzerland * Maillon 2014. Strasbourg, France * NEXT Festival 2015.

Lille Lille ( , ; nl, Rijsel ; pcd, Lile; vls, Rysel) is a city in the northern part of France, in French Flanders. On the river Deûle, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region, the Pref ...

, France * Mousonturm 2015.

Frankfurt am Main Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...

, Germany * 24th International Festival Theatre 2016. Plzeň, Czech Republic ;Awards: * Best direction: Kornél Mundruczó - 13th National Theatre Festival 2013. Pécs, Hungary * Best scenery: Márton Ágh - 13th National Theatre Festival 2013. Pécs, Hungary

Hard to be a God

;Festival invitations * KunstenFestivalDesArts 2010. Brussels, Belgium * Alkantara Festival 2010. Lisbon, Portugal * Theater der Welt 2010.

Essen Essen (; Latin: ''Assindia'') is the central and, after Dortmund, second-largest city of the Ruhr, the largest urban area in Germany. Its population of makes it the fourth-largest city of North Rhine-Westphalia after Cologne, Düsseldorf and D ...

, Germany * Festival de Keuze 2010. Rotterdamse Schouwburg, The Netherlands * Novart Festival 2010. Théâtre National de Bordeaux en Aquitaine, France * dunaPart2 - Platform of Contemporary Hungarian Performing Arts 2011. Budapest, Hungary * POT Festival 2011.

Tallinn Tallinn () is the most populous and capital city of Estonia. Situated on a bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, Tallinn has a population of 437,811 (as of 2022) and administratively lies in the Harju ' ...

, Estonia * Vienna Festival 2011. Vienna, Austria * Malta Festival 2011. Poznan, Poland * La Batie – Festival de Geneve 2011. Geneva, Switzerland * La Filature 2011. Mulhouse, France * Politics in Independent Theatre - HELLERAU 2011. Dresden, Germany *

2012. Adelaide, Australia * MESS International Theatre Festival 2012. Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina * Arm und Reich Festival 2013. Schauspielhaus Zürich, Switzerland * BITEF Festival 2013. Belgrade, Serbia * Summer Festival 2020. Gyula, Hungary ;Awards: *Price of the

Federal Agency for Civic Education The Federal Agency for Civic Education (FACE, german: Bundeszentrale für politische Bildung (''bpb'')) is a German federal government agency responsible for promoting civic education. It is subordinated to the Federal Ministry of the Interior, B ...

- 8th Politics in Independent Theatre; Staatsschauspiel Dresden 2011.

, Germany *International Association of Theatre Critics (IATC) award - MESS International Theatre Festival 2012. Sarajevo,

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and H ...

*MESS Forum "Luka Pavlović" Award by Theatre Critics and Journalists - MESS International Theatre Festival 2012. Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina *Special Mention of MESS Jury - MESS International Theatre Festival 2012. Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Frankenstein-project

;Festival invitations * Festival Premiéres 2008.

Strasbourg Strasbourg (, , ; german: Straßburg ; gsw, label=Bas Rhin Alsatian, Strossburi , gsw, label=Haut Rhin Alsatian, Strossburig ) is the prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est region of eastern France and the official seat of the Eu ...

, France * 8th National Theatre Festival 2008. Pécs, Hungary * New Plays from Europe 2008.

Wiesbaden Wiesbaden () is a city in central western Germany and the capital of the state of Hesse. , it had 290,955 inhabitants, plus approximately 21,000 United States citizens (mostly associated with the United States Army). The Wiesbaden urban area ...

, Germany * International Theatre Festival Divadelná Nitra 2008.

Nitra Nitra (; also known by other alternative names) is a city in western Slovakia, situated at the foot of Zobor Mountain in the valley of the river Nitra. It is located 95 km east of Bratislava. With a population of about 78,353, it is the fifth la ...

, Slovakia * Temps d’Images, La Ferme du Buisson 2008. Paris, France * dunaPart - Platform of Contemporary Hungarian Performing Arts 2008. Budapest, Hungary * Krakowskie Reminiscencje Teatralne 2009.

Kraków Kraków (), or Cracow, is the second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city dates back to the seventh century. Kraków was the official capital of Poland until 1596 ...

, Poland * KunstenFestivalDesArts 2009. Brussels, Belgium * Vienna Festival 2009. Vienna, Austria * Mladi Levi International Festival 2009.

Ljubljana Ljubljana (also known by other historical names) is the capital and largest city of Slovenia. It is the country's cultural, educational, economic, political and administrative center. During antiquity, a Roman city called Emona stood in the ar ...

, Slovenia * New Drama Action Festival 2009.

Vilnius Vilnius ( , ; see also other names) is the capital and largest city of Lithuania, with a population of 592,389 (according to the state register) or 625,107 (according to the municipality of Vilnius). The population of Vilnius's functional urb ...

, Lithuania * Homo Novus Festival 2009.

Riga Riga (; lv, Rīga , liv, Rīgõ) is the capital and largest city of Latvia and is home to 605,802 inhabitants which is a third of Latvia's population. The city lies on the Gulf of Riga at the mouth of the Daugava river where it meets the Ba ...

, Latvia * Festival de Keuze 2009. Rotterdamse Schouwburg, The Netherlands * Europӓische Kulturtage 2010. Karlsruhe, Germany * BITEF Festival 2010.

Belgrade Belgrade ( , ;, ; Names of European cities in different languages: B, names in other languages) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city in Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers a ...

, Serbia * Festival Bo:m 2011.

Seoul Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 ...

, South Korea * Santarcangelo Festival 2011. Santarcangelo, Italy * F.I.N.D. 2013. Berlin, Germany * National Theatre of Pécs 2014. Pécs, Hungary * Transitions Central Europe Festival, Onassis Cultural Centre 2015.

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

, Greece * Santiago a Mil International Theatre Festival 2017. Chile ;Awards: *Best performance - 8th National Theatre Festival 2008. Pécs, Hungary *Best actress: Lili Monori - 8th National Theatre Festival 2008. Pécs, Hungary *Audience Award - 8th National Theatre Festival 2008. Pécs, Hungary *Special Prize of BITEF - 44th BITEF Festival 2010. Belgrade, Serbia

The Ice

The original staging of ''The Ice'' by Kornél Mundruczó is dated back to 2006, when it was a co-production between the Trafó House of Contemporary Arts and Krétakör Company. In 2008 the performance was revived with some new cast members at the National Theater of Budapest, where it was on the repertoire until 2013. Two years later the show was transferred to the Trafó again, this time under the umbrella of the Proton Theater. ;Festival invitations * Festspillene i Bergen 2008.

Bergen Bergen (), historically Bjørgvin, is a city and municipality in Vestland county on the west coast of Norway. , its population is roughly 285,900. Bergen is the second-largest city in Norway. The municipality covers and is on the peninsula of ...

, Norway * International Theatre Festival "Kontakt" 2009.

Toruń )'' , image_skyline = , image_caption = , image_flag = POL Toruń flag.svg , image_shield = POL Toruń COA.svg , nickname = City of Angels, Gingerbread city, Copernicus Town , pushpin_map = Kuyavian-Pom ...

, Poland * MESS International Theatre Festival 2009. Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina * Vienna Festival 2010. Vienna, Austria * Texture Film and Theatre Festival 2010. Perm, Russia * 19th International Festival Theatre 2011. Plzeň, Czech Republic * HELLERAU - European Center for the Arts 2019. Dresden, Germany ;Awards: * Best young creator: Kornél Mundruczó - XIX. Międzynarodowy International Theatre Festival "Kontakt" 2009. Toruń, Poland *Silver Laurel Wreath Award for Best Performance in the Mittel Europa category - MESS International Theatre Festival 2009. Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina *The Special Jury Award for Best Ensemble - MESS International Theatre Festival 2009. Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina *The Avaz Dragon Award - MESS International Theatre Festival 2009. Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina *Texture Name Prize - Texture Film and Theatre Festival 2010. Perm, Russia

References

External links

*
In Conversation with Kornél Mundruczó
sifa.sg, 2015
Theatre review: Proton Theatre's Dementia is a little ward of horrors
straitstimes.com, Published: 14 Aug 2015(updated: 20 Jan 2016) {{DEFAULTSORT:Proton Theatre Theatres in Budapest