National Dance Theatre
The National Dance Theatre was opened on the 1st of December 2001 in the
historical building of the Castle Theatre, in the spectacular surroundings of the Buda
Castle, where the entire range of dance styles may be presented on the stages of the
theatre from folk to classical ballet, including contemporary and flamenco, performed
by professional dance companies.
The Castle Theatre, now the National Dance Theatre, is the only theatre building of
the 18th century in Hungary which still functions as a theatre. Originally, the building
was a monastry. In 1784 the Habsburg emperor, Joseph the second ordered to
transform it into a theatre by the plans of Wolfgang von Kempelen (the creator of The
Turk, a chess-playing automaton). Plaques on the wall of the building commemorate
that as well as the concert given by Ludwig van Beethoven at the theatre on the 7 th of
May 1800.
During its regular season, the National Dance Theatre offers four stages to the
companies: the main auditorium, the smaller yet more intimate chamber hall called
Refectory, the Festival Theatre in Budapest’s new cultural centre, the Palace of Arts,
and the open air stage in the Carmelite Courtyard for summer.
Beside organising dance performances the National Dance Theatre presents
exhibitions as well: in the National Dance Theatre Gallery excellent art exhibitions
while in the Kerengő Gallery photo exhibitions can be seen.