Lujza Blaha

Lujza Blaha (born Sept. 8, 1850, Rimaszombat, Hung. [now Rimavská Sobota, Slovakia]—died Jan. 18, 1926, Budapest) was a Hungarian actress and singer who is associated with the heyday of the népszínmű (Hungarian folk play).

Although born into an acting family, the woman known as “the nation’s nightingale” came to fame using the name of her first husband, conductor János Blaha. She began her career in singing roles in 1871 at the Hungarian National Theatre. In 1875 she joined the Népszínház (People’s Theatre), where she mostly played leading roles in folk plays, a lighthearted genre featuring rural characters and sentimental and comic songs in what was then thought to be the original Hungarian folk style.

Blaha was the first to play the parts of Finum Rózsi in Tóth Ede’s A falu rossza (1875; “The Village Rascal”), Szilaj Kata in Lukácsy Sándor’s A vereshajú (1877; “The Redhead”), and Judge Török’s wife in Ferenc Csepreghy’s A piros bugyelláris (1878; “The Red Purse”). She also gave a memorable performance in Victorien Sardou’s Madame Sans-Gêne (1894) and concluded her career with a benefit performance of a musical version of Csiky Gergely’s play Nagymama (1908; “Grandmother”). In 1901 she became a permanent member of the Hungarian National Theatre.