Jurányi House
Sex educational cabaret
In English
Trigger warning: smoke, 14+
Veronika Szabó and Attila Lestyán shrewdly avoid didacticism in SexEd: Cabaret, their multi-genre, interactive performance on sex education. This formidable duo of the Hungarian independent contemporary theatre scene have been active as a two-person company since 2023. With its formation, the Seven Trials Theatre Troupe responded to the past 16 years of Hungarian cultural policy by declaring that, as an underfunded independent company, they would create productions with just seven rehearsals. Of course, this commitment need not be taken seriously – unlike the mission of SexEd Cabaret, a venture branded as dangerous in its own country. In Hungary, as a result of a vaguely worded law passed in 2021, those aiming to provide sex education, especially as outsiders in schools, have had to face numerous obstacles in recent years. The creators of SexEd were also transgressing when, with the cooperation of brave teachers and principals, they ingeniously circumvented this legislation so harmful to children, bringing this uproariously funny and gentle performance to scores of Hungarian youth and not-quite-youth alike. (Noémi Herczog, curator)
Whose expectations do we want to meet during sex? What should I do to satisfy my partner? What to do to make the other feel good? Where is your boundary? What do we even call sex nowadays? What is your relationship with intimacy? Do you use your imagination? Do you often watch porn?
These are the questions among many others we deal with in our SexED Cabaret. Come and see our Dating Show, listen to our Educational Podcast, take part in our Porn Quiz, meet our invited guests and most importantly be welcomed by our two presenters, Dicky and Bussy.
CREDITS
Performers, creators: Attila LESTYÁN, Veronika SZABÓ
Dramaturge: Attila KOMÁN
Sex Education expert: Rebeka Dóra KAJOS
Costume: Ágnes VARJU
Sound and light designer: Ádám LANGÓ
Video: Máté KŐRÖSI
Drama teacher: Barbara SOMFAI
Production leader: Dániel MAYER
Production partners: FÜGE, Jurányi, NKA, Sín Arts Centre, Színműhely Alapítvány
REVIEWS
“Lestyán and Szabó, among the most distinctive cabaret performers on the contemporary performing arts scene, deftly balance educational demonstration, public-service dating advice, and interactive audience facilitation, all while wearing Ágnes Varjú's brilliant costumes. They bring their own uncertainties to the stage with the same confidence and autonomy as they expose the harmful absurdity of pornography. The cabaret format, handled with impeccable taste and playful precision, prevents the performance from becoming didactic, instead offering a performative refutation of the notion – enshrined in legislation – that sex education is inherently dangerous.”
– Beatrix Kricsfalusi, Halász Péter Award Laudation, 2026.
“And indeed, the performance contains genuinely educational moments. It also works brilliantly as cabaret: at times we laugh out loud, at others we squirm with embarrassment, and then we find ourselves laughing at our own embarrassment. My high school homeroom teacher, meanwhile, would almost certainly cross himself in horror.”
– Kinga Fancsali, Szinhaz.net, 2024.
TOURS, FESTIVALS
Thealter, Szeged, 2026.
Sziget Festival, Milestone Institute, Budapest, 2024.
Classroom Theater Festival, at 4 schools in the countryside and 4 in Budapest, 2024.
BIO
Veronika SZABÓ is a freelance actor, director, clown, and theatre lecturer. She graduated from the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama in London, where she studied physical theatre and contemporary theatre practices. Before that, she studied Applied Theatre at Goldsmiths, University of London. She was a member of the London Clown School and has been a member of the Red Nose International Clown Network since 2019.
In her theatre performances, including Warpaint (2015), A kisbaba (2016), The Timestealers (2016), Queendom (2017), Animal City (2018), Dino Coming Out (2018), Candle-Lit Dinner (2020), Sirens (2022), and Kingdom (2026), she explores the performativity of sexual and gender identities. She is interested in breaking the fourth wall and creating playful, grotesque, and visceral performances, often inviting the audience to participate.
Her performance Queendom won the Audience Award at the Thealter Festival, while SexEd Cabaret won the Péter Halász Award. Her works have been presented at theatres and festivals in the United Kingdom (Camden People’s Theatre, Roundhouse, BikeShed Theatre, The Space, Southbank Centre, ICC Speak), Germany (Let Me In Festival, Collegium Hungaricum, Montag Modus Festival, Off Europa), Hungary (Bánkitó Festival, Kolorádó Festival, Sziget Festival, Artus, MU Theatre, Trafó), the Czech Republic (Venuše ve Švehlovce, Prague), Serbia (Desire Festival), Romania (TESZT), and Kosovo (FemArt).
She has also worked with Ildikó Gáspár as a choreographer at Dailes Theatre in Latvia, Göteborgs Stadsteater, and Schauspielhaus Köln. She is a theatre lecturer on the Performance and Theatre course at FreeSZFE and the founder of the band Abszolút Beginners.
Attila LESTYÁN is an actor, performer, PhD student, and clown doctor. He graduated from the University of Theatre and Film Arts in Budapest with a degree in acting and completed his internship at the Katona József Theatre. He lived in Japan for six months, where he studied traditional Japanese theatre. He has appeared in numerous independent theatre productions. In 2023, he co-founded the duo Seven Trials Theatre, where he works as co-director and performer.
CONTACT
Attila LESTYÁN
lestyanyatesz@yahoo.com
hetprobastarsulat@gmail.com