Hunglish.org

A show you will not forget, it's Ben Hur, live at the Budapest, Sportarena in December. Get ready for chariots instead of sleighs for Christmas and Romans instead of elves.

Written by Natalie Jaro

For 15 years this live production of Ben Hur has been developing steadily behind closed door and will be commencing at the Budapest, Sportarena on the 11th of December. This creative, collaborative effort has been headed by German producer, Franz Abraham. The show involves a cast of over 400 performers. It will run in time with the 50th anniversary of the 1959 film version of Ben Hur that stars Charlton Heston. The film was an adaptation of the novel that was written in 1880 and based on the book, A Tale of Christ, by Lew Wallace. It is a tale that portrays the life of the Jewish prince, Judah Ben Hur, at the start of the 1st century. The performance is rumored to be a monumental event that will take its audience back 2000 years to replicate the famous chariot scene where five “quadrigas” or chariots race around the arena floor pulled by specially trained horses. Then there is the music which is guaranteed to be spectacular as it is provided by Hollywood composer, Klaus Badelt, who devised the soundtracks of Pirates of The Caribbean, Gladiator and Hannibal. And for all those animal lovers, there is a large stock of animals, 100 in all, that includes horses, camels, donkeys, chickens, falcons and eagles to admire. Memorable special effects and a fantastic light show are ahead with sound, water, wind and pyrotechnic effects to detail the ambiance. Ben Hur seeks his revenge as a gallery slave when he is unjustly condemned for an alleged assassination attempt against the Roman governor. It is a show directed by Philip Mckinley that is sure to knock your toga off.