The “Radu Stanca” National Theater of Sibiu brings the excellence of Romanian theater to Japan, with performances at the Romanian Pavilion at Expo Osaka 2025 and at the Tokyo Metropolitan Theatre. The tour is supported by the Romanian Cultural Institute in Tokyo, in collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Culture, the Romanian Pavilion at Expo 2025 Osaka, the Romanian Embassy in Japan, and the Yamamoto Noh Theater, and marks a landmark moment in Romania’s cultural diplomacy in Asia.
This series of performances brings Romanian performing arts to the forefront, strengthening the visibility of our culture in an international context and creating a lively dialogue with the diverse audience of a world-class exhibition. The tour represents a landmark moment for Romanian-Japanese artistic dialogue and for the promotion of Romanian theater in Asia.
On September 24, at the Expo National Day Hall at Expo Osaka 2025, the play “Electra,” based on Sophocles and Euripides and directed by Mihai Măniuțiu, will take the stage. “Electra” brings European cultural myths into the contemporary era through a unique combination of classical tragedy and Maramureș folk music, performed live by the Iza Group. The performance explores the connection between destiny and community, creating a unique theatrical space where tradition and modernity meet, offering the audience an intense and memorable cultural experience.
Marin Sorescu’s literature is not only a point of reference for the local culture, but a true linguistic and stylistic heritage that synthesizes some of the most special dimensions of the Romanian soul. This distinctive and recognizable specificity of his writings, in which the humor of misfortune intertwines with the precise observation of the human condition, reaches a climax in the wonderful metaphor-play “Iona” which, certainly, thanks to the talent of Silviu Purcărete, will be a true spectacular miracle. (tnrs.ro)
Directed by Silviu Purcărete, the show "Iona" becomes a unique theatrical experience, bringing Romanian spirituality into dialogue with Japanese cultural sensitivity. The audience will be invited into an artistic and intercultural communion, in which the performing arts explore the universal tensions and harmonies of existence.
