The Reconstruction of the Marionette Theatre in Fertőd

Architects: Csaba Molnár, Viktor Szentkuti, Dénes Halmai
Text: Krisztina L. Balogh
Photos: Zsolt Batár, Forster Örökséggazdálkodási Központ

Standing next to the castle of Fertőd, this special building was used for 150 years as a granary and still preserved the puppet theatre favoured by the aristocracy in the Baroque era, which is a unique one in Europe. This marionette theatre was opened in 1773 in honour of Queen Mary Theresa with Philemon and Baucis, the single marionette opera by Haydn, who was also the conductor of the performance then. The puppet theatre, the adjacent Baroque-style water-tower and orangery are outstanding universal historical monuments of the history of architecture, music and garden art whilst a unique example of Baroque marionette opera performances as no similar building exists elsewhere in the world. This is the reason why careful in-depth scientific research work preceded reconstruction focussing on primarily issues of the birth of the theatre in the 18th century, as well as defining its spatial organisation and operations.

General design: M Építész Iroda Kft.
Architects: Csaba Molnár DLA, Viktor Szentkuti, Dénes Halmai
Fellow architects: Zsolt Bánhegyi, Gábor Bencsik, Viktória Istók, Lilla BorókaKoch, Katalin Kersner, Gergely König
Art historical consultants: Dr. János Kräling, Dr. Balázs Halmos, Dr. Csaba Fekete J.
Experts on archaeology: András Koppány, Renáta Kupovics, László Thury
Structure: Miklós Armuth
Acoustics: Frigyes Reis, Attila Balázs Nagy
Expert on framework: Dr. László Kakasy, Gergely Dobszay
HVAC: Albert Lovas
Electrical engineering: Zsolt Beharka, Csaba Zentai
Client: Műemlékek Nemzeti Gondnoksága