by RUPERT BOTTENBERG

Canadians may look forward to Labour Day, but for Hungarians, the main holiday this time of year - or any time of year - is the Feast of Saint Stephen. August 20 is the day for fireworks, parades, partying and of course lugging a case containing the right hand of Saint Stephen from the Basilica through the streets of Budapest.

Now, Stephen wasn't any old saint, and some of what he did wasn't all that saintly (his foe, the pagan leader Koppany, was chopped into four parts after losing their final battle). But a millennium ago Stephen whupped the pagans, gave Hungary a united, Christian makeover and became the nation's first king, so mad props to him. Not only does he have a major holiday bearing his name, but Saint Stephen now boasts his own rock opera - which, thanks to Hungarian-American impresario Andrew Pongratz, is making a Montreal stop on its North American tour.

The production István a Király ("Stephen the King") made its domestic debut in the '80s, while the Communists were still in power. Needless to say, a nationalist musical with explicit Catholic overtones didn't sit that well with the reds. "It was like a protest against the Communist regime," says Pongratz, "and seen by many thousands at open-air stages. None as large, though, as in Csiksomlyo, Transylvania, last summer, where over 500,000 people saw it and sang along with the actors.

"There it was considered a protest against the Romanian rulers who discriminate against the three million Hungarians who live in Transylvania. There is a Romanian law that the only way another nation's flag can be displayed in Romania is if the Romanian flag is displayed next to it. At this performance, the half-million Hungarians protested with thousands of Hungarian flags. If anyone would have displayed a Romanian flag, that person would have at least been beaten - if not worse."

Okay, uh, leave the flags at home. But do check out István a Király when it hits Montreal. Pongratz speaks with admiration of the young performers in this production, no bunch of amateurs. "They are all students or graduates of the stage-musical division of the Vasutas, the music schools sponsored by the Hungarian state railways."

Pressed for comparisons, Pongratz points to another rock-flavoured musical with a Christian twist, Andrew Lloyd Weber's Jesus Christ Superstar. "It is the same idea, but with beautiful Hungarian folk motifs in a modern rock interpretation. In Hungary, István a Király is considered the most popular musical of our time. Every student and youngster knows the songs and the words and sings them. I tell people to bring their children - all under 18 admitted free - so they can learn history from the stage."

At Our Lady of Hungary Roman Catholic Church (90 Guizot W., metro Jarry) on Thursday, Sept. 2, 7:30 p.m., $25 (under 18 free), for tickets or info call Julia Ciamarra at 739-1065

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