The Bucharest National Theater’s production, Any Other Candidates? a play-concert based on A Lost Letter by I.L. Caragiale, has been selected for the program of the 36th edition of the National Theater Festival, which will take place from October 16 to 25, 2026. The festival’s curatorial team—composed this year of theater critics Raluca Cîrciumaru, Alina Epîngeac, and Sebastian-Vlad Popa—has included the NTB production on an exclusive list of 36 titles that define the excellence and complexity of this year’s Romanian theater scene. The concert-performance Any Other Candidates?, whose concept, adaptation, music, and songs were created by the well-known artist Ada Milea, stands as undeniable proof of the creative strength of the show’s artistic team—a team that brings together actors Petre Ancuța, Emilian Mârnea, Florin Călbăjos, Laura Gabriela Oana, Aylin Cadîr, Tiberiu Enache, Natalia Călin, Emilia Popescu, Mihai Munteniță, Silviu Biriș, Vitalie Bichir, Alina Petrică, and Florentina Țilea. The creative team is rounded out by Anca Hanu (co-writer of the songs, alongside Ada Milea), set designer Maria Constantin, and choreographer Florin Fieroiu, with sound design by Victor Pamfilov and lighting design by Daniel Tiuntiuc. The concert-performance was produced at the National Theater’s “Ion Sava” Center for Theater Research and Creation. In this production—which, incidentally, kicked off the current summer season at the NTB Amphitheater—Ada Milea’s inventiveness meets Caragiale’s genius and the Bucharest National Theater actors’ enthusiasm for the craft, in 70 effervescent and humorous minutes. Met with enthusiastic applause from the audience, "Any Other Candidates?" is a production that has stood out for its originality and the bold way it connects classic satire with current events. Starting with the new season—which opens on September 5, 2026—NTB will present the performance "Any Other Candidates?" in the Pictură Hall. In order to welcome the audience, tickets will go on sale online at www.tnb.ro starting July 10, 2026.   Translated by Andreea Codrea-Boeriu 

The Box Office will be closed for the summer! Tickets for the opening performances of the 2026–2027 season can be purchased exclusively online through the bilet.ro platform. Starting August 24, 2026, the box office will reopen with its regular hours: Monday: 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.; Tuesday–Sunday: 10:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m. We wish you a wonderful summer and look forward to seeing you at our performances during the new 2026–2027 theater season!   Translated by Andreea Codrea-Boeriu 

The “I.L. Caragiale” National Theater in Bucharest (NTB) is wrapping up its 2025–2026 theater season. Beyond the artistic excitement, this season marks the beginning of an institutional restructuring, as Ada Hausvater, the winner of the project competition organized by the Ministry of Culture, takes over as artistic director. The past ten months have been marked by the premieres of the 2025–2026 season: Nothing is by Chance, written and directed by David Schwartz (September 19, 2025), No Magic Pill by Christian O’Reilly, directed by Laurențiu Rusescu (December 13, 2025), Of People, Doctors, and Rhinoceroses adapted by Claudiu Goga from Arthur Schnitzler, directed by Claudiu Goga (March 13, 2026), The Bride's Time and Her Gown, written and directed by Gavril Pătru (April 18, 2026), Yen by Anna Jordan, directed by Ciprian Chiricheș (April 19, 2026) and, last but not least, the premiere of the concert-performance Any Other Candidates?, created by Ada Milea, at the Open-Air Amphitheater (June 24, 2026), an event that kicked off the summer program on the NTB rooftop, with the NTB’s summer season set to take shape soon. The National Theater of Bucharest’s performance of Mary Stuart by Robert Icke, based on Friedrich Schiller and directed by Andrei Șerban, at the opening of the 7th edition of the Kielce International Theater Festival in Poland, as part of the 13th edition of the prestigious MITEM (Madách International Theater Meeting) in Budapest, and also as part of the National Theater Festival, represent key moments of the season that has just concluded. NTB’s decision to develop an artistic research component took shape through workshops led by actor Răzvan Oprea, choreographer Judith State, casting director Domnica Cârciumaru, director Ada Milea, theater scholar Oana Borș, as well as through a series of staged readings resulting from the Playwriting Workshop coordinated by Mimi Brănescu. This special project focused on identifying, developing, and presenting to the public texts by playwrights of the new wave, as well as on testing their works through performance. Finally, the NTB’s openness to the public and its desire to create diverse artistic experiences were reflected in its visual identity projects and in the 15 exhibitions hosted in the theater’s lobbies throughout the season. This spring brought a breath of fresh air to NTB. Ada Hausvater—NTB’s first full-term manager following an interim period that lasted nearly five years—began her tenure on May 1, 2026, with a mandate dedicated to transforming the NTB into a hub of creative excellence, reaffirming its status as the country’s premier theater and a beacon of European culture and civilization. Ada Hausvater’s recent initiative to appoint director Andrei Șerban as honorary director of the NTB is a clear signal that the doors of NTB are open to excellence, human generosity, and uncompromising performance. NTB will remain active in the coming period as well: with the opening, on September 5, 2026, of the new season—a season currently being organized — the National Theater of Bucharest aims to create a rich theatrical program for its audience, supported by a series of new cultural and artistic initiatives and memorable encounters with leading figures in Romanian and international theater.   Translated by Andreea Codrea-Boeriu