The opera tells the story of Hungarian-Croatian nobleman Miklos Zrinyi and the battle of Szigetvar in which he and his outnumbered troops tried to contain the advancing Ottoman forces commanded by Sultan Suleiman I, the Magnificent, in 1566.
The Budapest Opera will show the piece as part of the Hungarian state’s Zrinyi-Szigetvar 1566 Memorial Year commemorating the 450th anniversary of the event.
It will be performed by the Croatian National Theatre of Osijek (Eszek), Okovacs told a press conference.
Gordan Grlic Radman, the Croatian ambassador, described the three-act piece as his country’s most outstanding opera and Zrinyi the symbol of loyalty, courage and the love of the homeland.
The chief patrons of the performance are Hungarian President Janos Ader and his Croatian counterpart Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic.
