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Ștefan Câlția (b. 1942) is one of the major figures of contemporary Romanian art, internationally recognized for a body of work marked by remarkable coherence and depth. His artistic universe is deeply rooted in the rural landscapes of Transylvania and in a profound connection with nature, while also exploring the world as a theatrical stage, collective memory, and the human journey through life. Carefully researched and preserved through the foundation that bears his name, his oeuvre represents a significant contribution to the heritage of contemporary art. His works have been presented in major exhibition projects both in Romania and internationally, in museums and cultural institutions that have become spaces for encounter, reflection, and cultural dialogue.


Silviu Purcărete is one of the most renowned Romanian theatre directors, with an outstanding career that has earned him international recognition far beyond the borders of his native country. His reputation is reflected in the numerous national and international awards he has received, as well as in his participation in many of the world’s most important theatre festivals and cultural events. After graduating in Theatre Directing from the Academy of Theatre and Film in Bucharest, Purcărete worked, beginning in 1974, as a director for theatres in Constanța, Bucharest, Craiova, and Sibiu. He also taught at the Academy of Theatre and Film in Bucharest, served as manager of the Bulandra Theatre in Bucharest, and later became director of the Théâtre de l’Union – Centre Dramatique National de Limoges in France. Alongside his theatrical work, he has shown a strong interest in cinema, making his feature film directing debut in 2012 with Somewhere in Palilula.

Celebrated for his distinctive style, which transforms every production into a powerful and cathartic experience, Silviu Purcărete is especially drawn to the classical literary repertoire. His work encompasses ancient tragedies such as Phaedra after Seneca and Euripides, The Danaids, and Oresteia after Aeschylus, as well as Shakespearean theatre and major literary masterpieces including Faust after Goethe, Decameron 645 after Boccaccio, and Three Sisters after Chekhov. For the “Radu Stanca” National Theatre in Sibiu, he created productions such as Metamorphoses after Ovid, Gulliver’s Travels after Jonathan Swift, Oidip after Sophocles, and the legendary Faust, widely regarded as one of the defining achievements of Romanian and international theatre in recent decades. He also directed The Story of the Naughty Princess, a Brechtian reinterpretation of the kabuki theatre convention. His most recent production, The Extraordinary Story of Abul Hossein the Yemeni and His Escape into the Wilderness, revives an almost forgotten tale from the vast tapestry of One Thousand and One Nights.

Silviu Purcărete has received numerous awards and distinctions, including the Critics’ Prize and the Hamada Foundation Award for Artistic Excellence at the Edinburgh International Festival (1991), the Award for Best Foreign Production at the Festival of the Americas in Montreal (1993), the Golden Globe Peter Brook Prize for Best Theatre Direction (1995), the Critics’ Prize at the Dublin Theatre Festival (1996), and the Special Jury Prize at the International Shakespeare Festival in Gdańsk (2006). Since 2003, he has been an individual member of the Union of the Theatres of Europe and has also been named Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters.


Vasile Șirli was born in Variaș, Romania, and has lived in Paris since 1986. Educated in Timișoara and at the National University of Music in Bucharest, he has devoted his creative work to theatre, film, dance, and song, developing a musical language that moves effortlessly between pop-rock, jazz, and contemporary music. Throughout his career, he has collaborated with some of the most important Romanian and international directors, including Lucian Pintilie, Mircea Daneliuc, Gábor Tompa, Matthias Langhoff, Petrika Ionesco, and Silviu Purcărete, for whose productions he created some of the most memorable scores in contemporary theatre.

His work has been recognized with numerous national and international distinctions, including awards from the Romanian Composers’ and Musicologists’ Union, the Gopo Awards, and several UNITER distinctions. In 2026, he received the UNITER Award for Best Original Music and Sound Design for the score of The Extraordinary Story of Abul Hossein the Yemeni and His Flight into the Desert, directed by Silviu Purcărete. Since 1990, he has served as Musical Director of Disneyland Paris, establishing himself as one of the Romanian artists with the most significant international careers in music for the performing arts.

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Event in Romanian, with translation into English
Romania