The BINÁLÉ unfolds within a building whose layered history mirrors Budapest’s cultural transformations. Constructed in 1927 as an Art Deco transformer house in the courtyard of City Hall, it served as a power station until the 1950s. After the political transition of the 1990s, under Tamás Jordán’s direction, it was reborn as a receiving theater and became a vital gathering point in the city’s intellectual life. By the 2000s, it had shifted again—this time into an emblematic site of underground and electronic music.

Closed in 2011, the building stood vacant for over a decade until restoration work in 2022–23 stabilized its structure as part of the City Hall Park rehabilitation. In 2025, the Örkény Theatre takes on its stewardship, reimagining the site as a vibrant, experimental cultural and community hub—once more reintegrated into the city’s living fabric.

Merlin, 1052 Budapest, City Hall Park