English version, Dancers in voluntary emigration

Dancers in voluntary emigration Népszabadság • Melinda Serfőző • 2006. november 21. Two in One Company held its very last performance in Hungary yesterday, because its members, Michaela Pein and Ákos Hargitay have decided to emigrate from the country and to work abroad as an act of protest against the inconsistence of the state subsidy system. We aim to shake up this lukewarm still water. All Hungarian dancers are affected by the discriminative cultural policy of the ministry [of Culture and Education] that lacks real concept. Therefore, we have decided to stop proving ourselves now, after 15 years of continuous professional work. We have been living and working in Austria since September and should all the necessary conditions for artistic creation guaranteed would we come back to Hungary – concluded Ákos Hargitay. The main reason for the company’s objection is that the ministry [of Culture and Education] has withdrawn support for them. Former minister [of Culture and Education] András Bozóki awarded HUF 1.5 Mio last spring from his ministerial portfolio budget for the realization of the 2006 programmes of Two in One Company. This happened after Ákos Hargitay had informed him – upon receipt an award of Budapest Fringe Festival – that the Board of Trustees in charge of dance of NKÖM (Ministry of the National Cultural Heritage) had halved support for the company in 2005 and completely withdrew it a year later. Current minister [of Culture and Education] István Hiller has stinted them precisely of this HUF 1.5 Mio. According to the two dancers, the corrupt methods of grant distribution by the above mentioned board of the ministry has been a real hassle to the entire Hungarian dance scene for a long time. That is because the rules governing the board’s operation fail to obligate members to watch performances; moreover, the minutes of meetings are confidential and board members are not compelled to reason their decisions. Hargitay and Pein say that the boards have always passed biased decisions that are based on connections, regularly ignoring the statistics and professional reports attached to applications. They believe that it is impossible to create something really professional under such circumstances; consequently, most contemporary dancers are producing shows on a conveyor belt as this is the only way for them to receive support. They also blame the problem on the situation in which the dance scene has become divided, paranoid and completely lacks sympathy. Therefore the two dancers do not at all expect other dancers to join their action. We have contacted the ministry [of Culture and Education] for comments and have received the following response by the press department: “It is the minister [of Culture and Education] who decides on the allocation of funds from the NKA (National Cultural Fund) ministerial portfolio budget and the approval or rejection of applications. This also implies the right to amend earlier decisions.”

A véleményünket megerősítő írás az INDEX-en

http://index.hu/velemeny/jegyzet/feltud070321/ A féltudású magyar elit BELPOL, GAZDASÁG Publius Hungaricus* 2007. március 26., hétfő

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Emigráltunk! Sajtóközleményünk:

Elhagyja Magyarországot a Company Two in One 2006. november 23. Előadásunkkal is tiltakozunk, mert Hiller István oktatási és kulturális miniszter, Bozóki András volt kulturális miniszter korábbi döntését felülbírálva, visszavonta az elődje által (papíron) adományozott miniszteri támogatását. Michaela Pein és Hargitay Ákos - Company Two in One, ezért tiltakozásul bizonytalan időre beszünteti magyarországi előadóművészeti tevékenységét és önként vállalt emigrációban, külföldön folytatja tovább munkáját.

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A Népszabadságban megjelent írás

Táncművészek önkéntes emigrációban Népszabadság • Serfőző Melinda • 2006. november 21. Utolsó magyarországi előadását tartotta tegnap a Two in One Társulat: Michaela Pein és Hargitay Ákos ugyanis úgy döntött, a hazai támogatási rendszer visszásságai elleni tiltakozásul önkéntes emigrációba vonul, és ezentúl külföldön alkot. - Azt szeretnénk elérni, hogy ez a langyos állóvíz felkavarodjon. A szaktárca valódi koncepciót nélkülöző, diszkriminatív kultúrpolitikája minden magyarországi táncművészt sújt, de mi úgy döntöttünk, elég volt, tizenöt év szakmai múlttal a hátunk mögött nem bizonygatjuk tovább, hogy jók vagyunk. Szeptember óta Ausztriában élünk és dolgozunk, Magyarországra akkor jövünk vissza, ha biztosítani tudják az alkotáshoz szükséges feltételeket - foglalta össze kérdésünkre Hargitay Ákos.

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