Háry János

Háry János is a Hungarian folk opera (that is, a spoken play with songs, in the manner of a Singspiel) in four acts by Zoltán Kodály to a Hungarian libretto by Béla Paulini (1881–1945) and Zsolt Harsányi, based on the comic epic The Veteran (Az obsitos) by János Garay. The first performance was at the Royal Hungarian Opera House, Budapest, 1926. The subtitle of the piece is Háry János kalandozásai Nagyabonytul a Burgváráig – János Háry: his Adventures from Nagyabony (Great Abony) to the Vienna Burg. The UK stage premiere was at the Buxton Festival in 1982 conducted by Anthony Hose with Alan Opie in the title role.