The building of the National Theater "Lucian Blaga" and the Romanian National Opera in Cluj-Napoca will undergo restoration as part of a EUR 20 million investment project financed by the Development Bank of the Council of Europe (BDCE). 

"Cluj-Napoca is a city of superlatives, a city where investments, economic development, and the dynamics of the cultural landscape go hand in hand, and this can be seen in the city's appearance, the standard of living, and how Cluj-Napoca is talked about in Romania and Europe. As minister of culture, I am very pleased to be able to contribute to the success of this city through concrete interventions regarding heritage investments, funding for cultural projects, the efficiency of cultural institutions, and the professionalization of human resources in the cultural field," said minister Raluca Turcan during a visit to Cluj-Napoca, cited by Ziarul Financiar.

The building of the Cluj Theater was inaugurated on September 8, 1906, with a performance by the Hungarian Theater. Built in the Baroque-Rococo style, the building has a capacity of 1,000 seats and three rows of loges.

The first performance in the Romanian language in the National Theater building in Cluj took place on May 14, 1919, and the first performance of the Romanian-language company in Cluj occurred on December 1, 1919, marking one year since the Great Union, according to Ziua de Cluj.

A first step towards the renovation of the two was the publication by the Project Management Unit of the Ministry of Culture in the SEAP (Electronic System of Public Procurement) of the announcement of participation in the tender for services related to the DALI phase of the investment for the restoration of the National Theater "Lucian Blaga" and the Romanian National Opera in Cluj-Napoca. 

radu@romania-insider.com

(Photo source: Teatrul National Cluj-Napoca on Facebook)