As early as the late 1500s, the Franciscan monks of Csíksomlyó founded a school for the education of the sons of the nobility in the area. Sources from the 17th century tell us that the students of the school, under the direction of their priest-teachers, performed mystery plays, especially during the great pilgrimages, for the education and entertainment of the assembled people. The school dramas were translated into Hungarian by the monks, and the performances were held in the square next to the monastery, where a wooden stage was built.

On Good Friday Passion Plays were performed annually between 1721 and 1774, with the participation of middle and high school students of the gymnasium.

Unfortunately historical events put an end to the drama of Csíksomlyo, which was only revived for short periods in later years.

In 1990, after the fall of the totalitarian regime, the revival of this centuries-old tradition was back on the agenda. After lengthy preparations, encouraged by representatives of Western European Passionplay Centres and with the support of Europassion, we succeeded in organising the passionplayer community from 1996 onwards, and on Palm Sunday we presented the Way of the Cross in the square in front of the Basilica Minor Papalis in Csíksomlyó. This performance is presented again every year.

Geographical location:

Csíksomlyó is located in Harghita County, it is part of the city of Csíkszereda. Csíksomlyó is a pilgrimage site for all Hungarians, a famous Holy Mary shrine and a centre of spiritual life for centuries. Anually on Pentecost, the famous Csíksomlyó pilgrimage takes place here. The altitude of Csíksomlyó is 703 m above sea level, but the peaks of Kis- and Nagysomlyó mountain are 834 m and 1032 m respectively. The area is part of the Eastern Carpathians mountain range, a basin wedged between two mountain ranges and crossed by the Olt river.

It is accessible by road and rail from all parts of the country. Distances from major cities: Brașov – 100 km, Bacău – 140 km, Târgu Mureș – 150 km, Cluj Napoca – 250 km, Sibiu – 210 km, Bucharest – 280 km

The venues for the performances:

The performance of the Passion is connected to two venues. On Palm Sunday, we present the story of  Christ’s suffering in the square in front of the church. This is a flat area on which the Way of the Cross unfolds in a circle, the crucifixion scene takes place in the centre of the circle. The other scene is the “saddle”, the area between the peaks of Kis-Somlyó and Nagy-Somlyó, a large natural amphitheatre. Here, the starting point is the Hármashalom altar, and the Passionplay follows a straight path to the bottom of the mountain peak, where the crucifixion takes place.