Erika Szegedi passed away

2023. 05. 26.

It is with deep sadness that the company of the Vígszínház announces the death of Erika Szegedi, a worthy and distinguished artist who was a member of the Vígszínház for almost 50 years, at the age of 82.
She was trained as a ballerina, but later studied at the Academy of Dramatic Arts in the class of Géza Pártos, and then signed on for a season at the Katona József Theatre in Kecskemét. Zoltán Várkonyi invited her to the Vígszínház, where she first played the role of a young nurse in Dürrenmatt's tragicomedy The Physicists.
During her decades at the Víg she appeared in more than 70 roles. Among her unforgettable roles are Adele in The Glass Slipper, Kata in The Taming of the Shrew, Abigail in The Witches of Salem, Anna in Platonov and Roxane in Cyrano.
Her work has been recognised with numerous professional awards and state honours.
Her queenly stature, wonderful voice and overwhelming energy predestined her for great dramatic roles, but she also gave unforgettable performances in comedy.
"Evolving and evolving from role to role, Erika Szegedi proved that she possessed a special psychic thermostat, capable of portraying a wide range of female characters, from the heat of passion and sensuality, to a permanent inner glow, to the piercing cold of mockery or evil. A bloodthirsty, beautiful woman, a classical figure consumed by passion, a childishly naive silly person, a dangerously cunning persona, and who can list the many different characters, fates and lives." - wrote one of our critics in 1977, even though she was only at the beginning of her career, but this description has remained true to the end. In her last comic role, in Monocle (2012), she sparkled with an indelible serenity, sometimes as a small child, sometimes as a superior, refined woman.
We cherish her memory with love.