“Luceafarul” - 50 years of theatre for children and youth
Founded
in 1949 as a Puppet Theatre the new children shows institution
with stable company opened its first season with Pushkin’s “Golden
Fish”, directed by Iosif Ligeti, having a five actors cast. The real
founder of the company was the professor and director Manole Al. Foca, professor
of philosophy and diction at the Iasi Conservatoire, personal secretary of
the blind poet Mihail Codreanu. He took care of the training of the first
generation of actors (Lucretia Carausu, Ana Suba, Elena Brehnescu, Emil Petcu,
George Zaharia, Petre and Emilia Valter, Ion and Simona Agachi, Constantin
and Nicolae Brehnescu, Eliza Florescu), some of wich can be seen in present
on the theatre stage (Constantin Brehnescu, converted to the stage directing,
Nicolae Brehnescu, Ion and Simona Agachi). The first performances were hosted
by an old movie hall, into a small hall on Stefan cel Mare street, in the
Catholic church’s courtyard. During these first years, the repertory
consisted mainly in Romanian folklore stories, completed, starting with its
future decades of activit,y with important titles of the universal literature:
”Tartarin of Tarascon” by Alphonse Daudet, “The Forced Mariagge”
by Molière, “The Turandot Princess” by Carlo Gozzi etc.
In 1973, the name of the institution turns into Theatre for Children and Youth, the theatre enlarging its repertory area and the scale of artistic devices, combining the puppetrie with music, poetry, pantomime and dance, adressing several categories of ages. One also tests performances in non-conventional areas, wells received by the audience. A new generation of actors is formed: Eliza Florescu, Ortansa Stanescu, Constantin Ciofu, Camelia Poenaru, Constantin Amuntencei, Nina Dimitriu, Mircea Sava, Doina Iarcuczewicz, Liviu Smantanica, to which a younger one is added - Dorina Crisan-Rusu, Liliana Mavris, Viorel Virlan, Toma Hogea, Gigi Sfaiter. They worked with the stage directors Natalia Danaila and Constantin Brehnescu, the scenographer Axenti Marfa, as well as with a long series of famous collaborators of all over the country: Nina Cassian, Valentin Silvestru, Silvia Kerim, writers, Catalina Buzoianu, Anca Ovanez, Petre Bokor, Nicolae Scarlat, stage directors, Hristofenia Cazacu, Cik Damadian, George Dorosenco, Eustatiu Gregorian, scenographers, Sabin Pautza, Vasile Spatarelu, Cristian Misievici, Anda Tabacaru, composers etc.
In 1977, because of the building’s damage, the theatre seat came to be, for ten years, the Youth House. The same year, the building of a new seat was started, where, begining with december 1987, the theater will carry on its activity. The building is extremely modern, is unic in Romania and rare in Europe, and it has two performance halls – the largest having 450 seats, the smallest 150 seats, rehearsall halls, large lobbies, production workshops. Its inauguration also marked the completion of the theatre name, its frontispiece bearing the inscription Theatre for Children and Youth “Luceaf[rul”. On the permanent theatre poster one can find classic authors of the universal literature (Charles Perrault, the Grimm Brothers, Carlo Collodi, H.G. Wells, Mark Twain, Pamela Travers, Frank Baum) and Romanian authors (Ion Creanga, Mihail Sadoveanu, Vasile Alecsandri, I.L. Caragiale). The “Luceafarul” stable company is made up at present of 22 actors, 2 stage directors, one scenographer, one literary advisor. The theatre is partial financed by the County Council, having also his ones revenues. The troupe prepares about six new performances each season, that are beeing attented by some 50.000 spectators. Lately, one has reached an increasing artistical interest towards larger categories of public, like those of teenagers ang young people.
