Hungary’s government is preparing a three-day programme of events for 20 August, the country’s national holiday, with this year’s celebrations set to feature a shorter fireworks display and a large-scale audiovisual show projected onto the Parliament building.
The official name of this year’s celebrations is “20 August – The Nation’s Celebration – One Thousand Years Together in Europe”. The programme will cost around HUF 4 billion (EUR 11 million), according to government spokesperson Éva Magyar, who presented details of the events at a press conference in Budapest.
While some programmes will begin as early as 19 August, events will also continue at some locations in the days following the national holiday.
Ten Budapest locations will host events
The capital will host programmes at ten main locations: Margaret Island, the Danube riverside near Budapest University of Technology, Kossuth Square, the Parliament, Szabadság Square, Várkert Bazaar, Buda Castle, City Park, St Stephen’s Square and the area around St Stephen’s Basilica.
On 20 August, the traditional flag-raising ceremony and military officer commissioning will begin the official programme at 8 AM on Kossuth Square. This will be followed by a military and air parade, which can be viewed from the Danube embankments.
Meanwhile, Margaret Island will offer family and children’s programmes during the day, followed by light installations and concerts in the evening. Performers will include Hungarian acts such as Quimby, Random Trip and Boban Marković.
The celebrations will begin already on 19 August at the riverside near the Budapest University of Technology, where an electronic music event will be held.
Kossuth Square to become a temporary “Disco Square”
Kossuth Square will combine traditional elements with more contemporary entertainment this year. After the morning flag-raising ceremony, officer commissioning and military air parade, an evening party featuring a surprise guest will be held at the square.
Government spokesperson Éva Magyar said the location would temporarily be given the name “Disco Square” for the evening.
The organisers said their aim was to create programmes appealing to several generations, from children and parents to young adults and grandparents, while retaining the best-known traditional elements of the national holiday.
Parliament to become the centre of the evening show
The main event on the evening of 20 August will be a large-scale audiovisual show projected onto the Parliament building. The approximately 30-minute production will tell a story beginning with the formation of the Carpathian Basin, using a sequence of visual effects projected onto the iconic building.
The audiovisual show will then culminate in a 10-minute fireworks display.
The fireworks will be launched from the area between Margaret Bridge and Chain Bridge and are expected to be best viewed from the Buda side of the Danube. The show will be accompanied by music from Hungarian artists Iamyank, Balázs Zságer and DJ Bootsie.
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Fireworks to be shorter than usual
The fireworks will be considerably shorter than in previous years. According to Dániel Besnyő of the organising Centrum Production, he considers fireworks an outdated form of visual entertainment and had originally proposed a display lasting just three minutes.
However, fireworks and rockets had already been ordered well in advance, so the organisers ultimately decided to use them in this year’s show. The result will be a 10-minute display following the audiovisual production.
The organisers said they had only had around six weeks to put the programme together.
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Free Parliament visits and cheaper refreshments
Visitors will also be able to enter the Hungarian Parliament free of charge and without prior registration during the three-day celebrations. The traditional Holy Right procession will also take place as part of the national holiday programme.
The organisers also said they would once again limit the price of beer during the celebrations, while stressing that no state subsidy would be used for this purpose. A half-litre bottle of mineral water will cost less than HUF 500, while half a litre of beer will cost less than HUF 1,000.
With family programmes, concerts, traditional ceremonies, contemporary entertainment and the shortened fireworks display combined with a major audiovisual production, this year’s 20 August celebrations are set to offer a somewhat different take on one of Hungary’s biggest annual national events.
