Thursday
4pm-8pm : Wardrobe Fair at Dürer Kert Gardrób is a secondhand clothes bazaar, giving owners the opportunity to sell the tops, trousers, jackets, bags and dresses they no longer want, and visitors to browse to their heart’s content. Admission is free.
7pm-9pm:They Shall Not Grow Old at the Uránia National Film Theatre This 2018 documentary about World War I marks the centenary of Armistice Day. The film was directed and produced by Peter Jackson of the Lord of the Rings fame, using original rare footage from the archives of the British Imperial War Museum. Jackson and his team added the colouring, sound effects and voiceovers, the resulting film an evocative journey into the soldier’s sorry lot. Jackson’s own grandfather fought in the conflict, and provided the inspiration for the project. Tonight is the Hungarian premiere.
Screened in English with Hungarian subtitles.
8pm – : Dezső Oláh Trio with Mihály Dresch at the Budapest Jazz Club Hungary’s most celebrated saxophonist Mihály Dresch performs reworked jazz standards with the Dezső Oláh Trio, featuring the award-winning pianist of the same name. The venue, a former cinema just off Jaszai Mári tér, has a relaxed, café feel – but that’s a top-notch Steinway B piano whose keys Dezső Oláh will be gracing.
Friday
Mikulás
Here Santa Claus comes on the feast day for Saint Nicholas, 6 December. Mikulás is the real deal, when presents arrive from afar, expectant children polishing their shoes and leaving them on the windowsill. Everyone is on their best behaviour lest the evil krampusz show up, his presence indicated by a birch stick and the distant hint of punishment. Worse, no presents. This, of course, never happens, but silvery sticks may also be left as gentle warnings alongside the seasonal goodies. Around town, the city fills with merriment: special menus, kid’s attractions and, at certain Christmas markets, the red-suited fellow himself. From 6 December and all weekend, Christmas elves provide seasonal fun on the trains of the Children’s Railway, awaiting little ones with games, songs and dancing.
6.30pm – :Vágtázó Csodaszarvas at the A38 Ship The Huns are back! The Vágtázó Csodaszarvas debuted in 2005, revitalising the frenetic shamanistic folk music of the ancient Huns. Attila Grandpierre, founder of the ensemble, became a worldwide icon of ancient Hungarian ethno-shaman music with the group Vágtázó Halottkémek. On 6 December, anyone can experience the vibrant sounds of ancient Hungarians on the A38 Ship.
9pm-10.45pm: Easy Rider at the Bem cinema It’s 50 years since the recently departed Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper rode off into the sunset, dragging Jack Nicholson with them. Note the cameo appearance by Phil Spector. Get your motor runnin’….
Screened in English with Hungarian subtitles.
Saturday
8am-2pm: Advent Farmer’s Market at the Czakó Kert The Czakó Garden in Buda’s Tabán area is preparing for Christmas with charming festive decorations and home-grown or homemade produce: fruit, vegetables, cheeses, meat, flowers, spices, seeds and wild mushrooms, among other goodies.
7pm – : D-A-D at the A38 Ship The former Disneyland After Dark, these Danes promise the ‘rock of rock’, taken on the road to destinations as diverse as Great Yarmouth and Fort Lauderdale. Playing in little Copenhagen clubs since the early 1980s, the band have nearly 40 years of gigging to look back on.
8pm-11pm:Mayberian Sankülotts at the Trafó House One of Hungary’s most imaginative and promising dreampop bands – at least after their popular album, Neverending Sorry. Soon to be ten years old, the band celebrate at the Trafó. Joining them will be various other favourite musicians – it should be a special night.
Sunday
10am-noon:Christmas at Budakeszi Wildlife Park For one day only, Hungary’s own Christmas of Mikulás, Santa joins the creatures of the Carpathian Basin who reside in wilder climes here at the Budakeszi Wildlife Park just outside Budapest. He’s got other stuff to do, of course, such as deliver presents and be unfailingly jovial. And if there’s enough snow, he will slide in on a sledge; otherwise he’ll be taking a stylish horse carriage. Either way, kids can go for a ride on the vehicle. The event is also free for under-14s, with zoo entry included. Bear-feeding takes place at 11am, wolf-feeding shortly afterwards. Santa is expected around 11.
10am-6pm: WAMP Christmas Market at the Millenáris Park With the Christmas countdown, WAMP’s Christmas season has started, too. On the three Advent Sundays of December, they welcome everyone to the Millenáris Park with more than 200 designers and various exciting attractions. The booths will be filled with handmade and original products by Hungarian designers; you will find everything from clothes to toys and unique art prints. Festive treats, workshops and a children’s play corner also await.
11am-1pm: Mikuláss Charity Run on Margaret Island For the annual MikuLÁSS Charity Run on Margaret Island, scores of sporty Santas do one or two laps of the island, costumes and bells de rigueur. As the event is organised by the Sport and Leisure Association of the Visually Impaired (LÁSS) – MikuLÁSS being a play on words with Hungarian Christmas, Mikulás – there’s also a mini-run on a 400-metre track for blindfolded runners, with a guide provided. Also on hand will be lashings of mulled wine and Christmas biscuits.
5pm & 7pm:My Land by Recirquel at Müpa Given the critical acclaim lauded on it at the Edinburgh Fringe in 2018, it’s no surprise that My Land fills auditoriums almost every time it’s performed. Bence Vági, founder of Recirquel, a groundbreaking troupe that channels contemporary circus and dance, gathered seven outstanding Ukrainian acrobats to interpret their own take on identity and homeland.
This article was produced in co-operation with the A38 Ship.
