Radu Stanca National Theatre

The Radu Stanca National Theatre (Romanian: Teatrul Național "Radu Stanca" Sibiu) is the largest and the most important establishment of performing arts in Sibiu, Romania. Founded in 1949 as the State Theatre of Sibiu,[1] it was given the name of the Romanian playwright and theatre director Radu Stanca.

History

Between the 16th and 18th centuries, amateur street actors began to appear in Sibiu, performing in various improvised location. Around the middle of the 17th century, a wooden shed was erected in the Large Square of the city where the amateur performers could house their plays on a regular basis and some time after the plays were moved to a new location, near the western gate of the city.

In 1769 all plays were moved to the house of Baron Möringer, where they flourished and developed into more complex performances. In 1782 a group of actors led by Christoph Seipp arrived in Sibiu where, impressed by the atmosphere of the city, they settled for two years. The performances held by Seipp and the reaction of the public, convinced the local authorities that the city needed a theatre. The first location was set to be the Thick Tower.

After two fires broke out, the last being in 1949, the authorities founded a permanent professional artistic institution in the building where the Apollo Cinema was functioning. First performance, held on 9 December 1949, was O scrisoare pierdută under the direction of Radu Stanca. The German section was opened in 1956. The theatre is housed in the same building since then.[2]

Renamed in 2005, as Radu Stanca National Theatre, the institution became one of the leading Romanian theatres housing over a hundred plays. It organizes the Sibiu International Theatre Festival and also the large scale representation of Faust at the Balanta Warehouse.

References
  1. Radu Stanca National Theatre at agerpres.ro
  2. http://www.cultura.sibiu.ro/institutii/tnrs - Romanian only

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