Turda Municipal Theater

 

The first Romanian language theater performances were tours by the Fani Tardini Pascaly and Petculescu troupes in Turda between 1866 and 1879. The statuary organization of the "Romanian Craftsmen" in Turda in 1883, by the defender of the Romanian cause, Dr. Ioan Rațiu, was an encouragement for the development of theater in the Romanian language. The first review of Romanian theater in Turda appeared in 1903. In 1922, the society "Friends of the Arts" was established, which began with the performance of Moliere's "The Learned Ladies."

The Turda Municipal Theater building (Piața Republicii nr. 52) was built between 1902 and 1904 in an eclectic style, with architectural elements of the Art Nouveau, neobaroque and neorococo styles.

In August 1948, the People's Theater in Cluj was transferred to Turda in a building dating from 1902-1904 and is part of the historic center of Turda. Ten years later, in 1958, it changed its name to the State Theater in Turda. Thus the Turda Theater was born.

Over a period of more than half a century of existence, over 300 premieres have been presented here. In 1993, international collaborations and travels abroad with own performances began in Greece, France and Sweden. National premiere pieces have also been included in the institution's repertoire. In 1999, the institution changed its name to the Turda Municipal Theater. Since 1956, Turda artists have participated (successfully) in various national-level dramaturgy festivals. Some Turda actors are also remarkable in Romanian cinema (Stela Furcovici, Stelian Stancu). 

 In 2014, Turda Municipal Theater received a new name and is now called the "Aureliu Manea" Theater Turda, in honor of the late director, Aureliu Manea. This initiative to give a new name provides a authentic identity to the public cultural institution in Turda and at the same time is a recognition of the theatrical value of Aureliu Manea, who was the director of the State Theater in Turda. Manea represents the finest page in the history of the Turda theater and deserves appreciation from the entire Turda community for his exceptional achievements in the Romanian theater scene. The promotion of this project aims to pay tribute to the late director, Aureliu Manea, for his entire artistic career and for the memorable performances staged on the Turda stage. Born in Bucharest on February 4, 1945, in an artistic family, Aureliu Manea graduated from the I. L. Caragiale Institute of Theater and Cinematography in Bucharest in 1968 in the class of professors Radu Penciulescu and Mihai Dimiu. He made his debut in the same year at the National Theater in Sibiu with H. Ibsen's play, Rosmersholm.
The director collaborated with many theaters in the country, including the National Theater in Timisoara, the Municipal Theater in Ploiesti, the National Theater in Cluj, the State Theater in Turda, and the Youth Theater in Piatra Neamt, among others. Some of his reference performances include: The Seasons by Arnold Wesker, Philoctetes by Sophocles, Britannicus by Racine, Macbeth and A Midsummer Night's Dream by W. Shakespeare, The Seagull by A. P. Chekhov, A Stormy Night and Conul Leonida versus the Reaction by I. L. Caragiale, A Royal Celebration and Under the Moon's Light by Theodor Mazilu. He published Energies of the Show, essays on the science of directing, Imaginary Performances, writings on possible Shakespearean stagings, and Recovered Texts, a collection of original texts. Three plays written by Aureliu Manea were staged at the National Theater in Cluj in 2013 under the title Aureliu Manea Trilogy, directed by Gábor Tompa.
In 1992, he was awarded the UNITER Prize for his entire activity, and in 1999, the Diploma of Excellence for outstanding achievements in promoting theater arts, awarded by the Ploiesti Municipality and the Toma Caragiu Theater in Ploiesti.
For health reasons, Aureliu Manea retired from activity in 1991 and was placed in the Neuropsychic Recovery and Rehabilitation Home in Galda de Jos, where he passed away on March 13, 2014. 

 

During the periods of 1922-1926-1928, valuable performances took place in Turda. The theater ensembles from Bucharest, Cluj and Craiova find a special climate in Turda.

In the years 1940-1944, when Turda became a temporary border city through the hateful Vienna dictation, the Romanian theater experienced a rebirth for the population of North Transylvania, becoming a strong center for refugees.

Theater represents culture. "A mask laughs... a mask cries" is the motto that greets you at the entrance of the theater building. It is true that the theater has become an important cultural institution. There is no person who has not stepped at least once in this institution, to participate in different cultural events-theater, music, conferences, exhibitions.
In our modern society, the theater holds a distinct, irreplaceable place, because here man forms a moral conduct, fills his soul with beauty, banishes ugliness and criticizes it, forms dreams. Often, through the content of many theater plays, real life has taken to the stage, stories have come to life in the artists' play.

Children, accompanied and guided by teachers, parents, grandparents, shyly, curiously and amazed, step into the magical world of the "castle" called theater. It is already a tradition for the Turda theater to offer outstanding premieres for children.

"The theater" cannot be replaced by any other means of information and culture. Here, you are attracted by the costumes, makeup, music, the lights of the stage and the comfortable plush "boxes".