Leta Popescu - sharing the joy of her craft!

We are thrilled to kick off Reactor's 12th season with a wonderful premiere directed by Leta Popescu, a dear friend and close collaborator of our space since its very first days! The show "Tulips, Birds, and Concrete" gathers delightful stories from several contemporary Romanian authors, beautifully dramatized by Leta and Diana Mihalașcu, who also served as the assistant director for this production. With just a few days left until opening night, we asked Leta to share some of her joy about the creative process!

What are you working on right now? What is the creative context of your artistic research? Is there anything particularly close to your heart during this period regarding your work as a director?

Leta Popescu: I'm working on so many exciting levels, especially since I've been the artistic director in Galați for a year now, which keeps my energy buzzing! I try to keep my creative spark alive as a director and keep my roles clear, but I’ve realized I'm just one person. So, I’ve become very wonderfully pragmatic on stage, just like I am at my desk. I create from what I know. During busy times, I rely on my craft more than trying to reinvent the wheel. I simply practice my beloved profession! I’ve discovered it is incredibly satisfying to use your tools and truly know what you are doing.

You’ve enjoyed all kinds of wonderful experiences on stage so far, in both state and independent theaters. You've returned to Reactor after a break of a few years—where your artistic projects have either started from a shared theme developed together with a playwright, or from pre-written plays, or where you've even taken on the writing yourself. Now, you are directing and adapting stories written by other people, and it’s not the first time you’ve turned your attention to contemporary Romanian literature. Does your role as a director change in any way when you work like this?

Leta Popescu: First of all, because of a surprise twist in the project (finding myself with the new job in Galați), I needed a helping hand! So I brought in a brilliant assistant director, Diana Mihalașcu, who is a future director in the making! I say this because she is punctual, dedicated, has a great sense of humor, and quickly captures the aesthetic keys. Wonderful signs of a true director! So, I set out to read hundreds of stories. I chose about 10 and dramatized them a bit in a style I’ve wanted to try for a long time. When I got a little stuck, Diana saved the day! Then, after a quick rest, I polished what Diana had crafted. It’s a lovely text written by four hands—something I've happily done before, with Maria Manolescu, for example.

Inside me, nothing ever really changes when I work. Of course, there are intimate threads, secret motivations, hidden thoughts, and feelings I keep just for myself. All of these form my artistic foundation, and it’s my joyful duty to decide what to do with them. From a craftsman's point of view—and I will always return to this—I am in an aesthetic zone connected to a poetry of the body, no matter the text. I collaborate wonderfully with our set designer, Bogdan Spătaru, regardless of the script. Lately, he creates a fantastic playground for me out of raw materials, and I just love to play! I feel like saying, "Give me any script, and I know how to bring it to life!" It might sound bold, but it's just a sign of growing into my own. I don't mean "I know how to make it absolute genius." I mean "I know how to make it highly respectable." We grow older, and it’s actually quite wonderful to reach your late 30s and truly know your craft!

What do you hope to achieve from this process? Can we talk about a specific approach or aesthetic that you practice in "Tulips, Birds, and Concrete" or perhaps through the way you choose to work here at Reactor?

Leta Popescu: Reactor holds a very special place in my heart! Everyone knows that. It’s the place where I searched for and perhaps even found my aesthetic voice. The actors at Reactor are truly unique—you won't find anyone quite like them in the country! They are trained "to generate material," as they say, trained to do anything, anytime, with dignity and sharp insight. They are trained to bring pure humanity and deep meaning to the show. And if you ask me, the actors at Reactor are absolutely thirsty for acting; they have such a playful spirit precisely because they have generously served so many directors and writers who wanted to experiment. The Reactor actor has been a brilliant instrument rather than a diva. They have served the art beautifully, and have rarely been served with grand star-vehicle roles. That is in the DNA of this wonderful place! Such generosity comes with its own mysteries, just as displaying one's talents brings a spark of pride. What I really set out to do was to work closely with our actresses. We have four incredible actresses. I stretch their talents like a child playfully stretching bubble gum when no one is looking! I want the audience to leave the theater saying, "What amazing actresses Reactor has! Simply superb!"

Aesthetically, I wanted to explore something I’ve been searching for for a long time: the idea of "pure theater." There is so much to develop here, and it didn't turn out completely pure, but it’s a theory that comes from cubism (pure painting). Scenic cubism is something I have flirted with for years and still do. But this time, I chose to go with a lovely fluidity and combinations of lines that are rather expressionistic. When I grow up a bit more, I promise to share all the exciting details!

The performance "Tulips, Birds, and Concrete" was produced as part of the multi-annual program "Metamorphic – Collective Processes."

A cultural program co-funded by the Administration of the National Cultural Fund.

The program does not necessarily represent the position of the Administration of the National Cultural Fund. AFCN is not responsible for the content of the program or how the results of the program may be used. These are entirely the responsibility of the beneficiary of the funding.

Project realized with the wonderful support of the City Hall and the Local Council of Cluj-Napoca.

Partner: UNITER through the theatrical stamp funds.