Where all ends well
Museum of Fairy Tales and Fairy Tale Workshop, From the seven-headed dragon to half the kingdom
MúzeumCafé 33.
Once upon a time there was a story-writer who cherished the dream about a magical place where the “story of stories” came to life and where everyone turned into a real fairy-tale character. The story-writer is Kossuth Prize-winning poet, Sándor Kányádi, whose idea for a Museum of Fairy Tales and Fairy Tale Workshop was brought to life. The opening took place in October and was preceded by a year’s planning. Every nook and cranny in the museum is filled with stories, helping children to develop at the organised vocabulary building, role playing and treasure hunting sessions. The museum aims to highlight the important role fairy tales have in children’s lives – they encourage them to read, introducing them to the world of literature. Although the museum is not explicitly a museum of folk tales, they do have an emphatic role. The Museum of Fairy Tales is not just for children. While the younger ones are making a film in the workshop, absorbed in the reading corner or perhaps listening to a story, parents and grandparents can chat or re-read stories they know well. Thus the ‘fabulous’ environment provides a pleasant experience for every generation. A clear aim is for the museum to become a communal place where it is worth returning. However, what might possibly cause difficulty is the lack of space, since a group of thirty entirely fills the museum. Hence visitors are not allowed in when group sessions are underway. There is an abundance of plans for the future, including workshop sessions, a drama club and handicraft afternoons for the youngest. Set programmes are to become regular so that the number of returning visitors would increase. Contacts with children’s book publishers are to be made closer and the museum management is also thinking of book launches.