ACT - arthouse cinema & theatre
ACT - arthouse cinema&theatre imagines a world where the power of action, both in cinema and theatre, expands our collective understanding of communities and our own humanity in a performance of being. ACT is a platform for creative gestures in continuous dialogue with the city, the local community and the world at large, but also a scouting platform for emerging artistic projects, where the human being becomes an artistic medium of exposure and focuses on expanding areas of expression and visual experimentation. We aim to build an urban visual and human gallery where theatre and cinema are used to convey the most powerful cultural messages of the modern world.
Theatre
Adrian Damian
He is a set designer, creator of stage spaces and multimedia installations renowned for his innovative and spectacular creations. His ability to often integrate technology and new media elements into his set designs, transforming them into fascinating interactive spaces, is particularly noteworthy.
He studied set design at UNATC Bucharest and since graduating in 2010, he has designed over ninety productions in all major theaters in Romania and some abroad, including the Opera Grand Avignon (France), JK Theatre Opole (Poland), Espoo City Theatre Helsinki (Finland), Theatre Festival Revelation Astana (Kazakhstan), and Staatstheater Braunschweig (Germany).
A special place in his career is held by his collaboration with director Mihai Măniuțiu, with whom he has created over thirty shows, including Rambuku, which won the UNITER Award for Best Performance of the Year in 2018. One of his most significant projects was his collaboration with the famous director Robert Wilson as associate set designer for the play Rhinoceros at the National Theatre in Craiova in 2014, followed by his participation in the Watermill Summer Program, NY, in 2017 and 2018. In addition to these, he has collaborated with many other established directors such as Radu Afrim, Alexandru Dabija, Radu Alexandru Nica, Bobi Pricop, Peter Schnider, Roberto Bacci, Alexander Hausvater, Vlad Massaci, etc.
He has been the recipient of multiple awards, including Best Set Design — UNITER 2016 and 2021, the Vlad Mugur Prize awarded by the Hungarian State Theatre Cluj-Napoca (2024), Best Set Design — Hungarian Theatre Critics’ Association (2016), Best Set Designer — Romanian Fine Artists Union (2015), the Person of the Year in Theatre Award given by the Cotidianul newspaper (2017), and others.
Beyond his profession as a set designer in theater and opera, Adrian Damian has developed his artistic research in the field of multimedia installations, using new media and various technologies. Whether it involves neural headsets (Laboratory of the Imaginary 2017, 2018), industrial robots (Who Am I 2020), or motion sensors and tracking cameras (Network of Emotions, 2021 and SynergyX, 2024, both presented at RDW), his signature installations stand out for the depth of the ideas expressed and the emotions conveyed.
In 2023, he represented Romania at the Prague Quadrennial of Performance Design and Space (PQ2023) with the installation The Bridge, a work that was subsequently exhibited at the Romanian Cultural Institute on the occasion of the National Theatre Festival. Since 2017, his activity has been closely linked to the Odeon Theatre, where he has held several positions, including Set Designer, Artistic Consultant, and Deputy General Manager.
He is the President of the Romanian OISTAT Center (International Organisation of Scenographers, Theatre Architects and Technicians), a center he re-established with a group of artists in 2022. In this capacity, he has been involved in several projects and programs relevant to the profession, such as the Next on Stage conferences, the International Program in Scenography summer camp, book and album launches, curated thematic exhibitions, and many others. In 2024, he was the General Director of the Bucharest Scenography Biennial, an event revived after a 32-year hiatus.
Curator
Caterina Pruteanu
She graduated from the “George Enescu” University of Arts in Iași with a degree in Theatre Studies – Cultural Journalism, and then continued her studies at the master’s program of the University of Bucharest, the Center for Excellence in Image Studies, specializing in Society, Multimedia, Spectacle.
She has coordinated several cultural projects and is currently the founder and curator of the ACT – arthouse cinema&theatre festival and part of the team of the TV show Starea Nației (with Dragoș Pătraru).