The play “Gro(o)ve”, directed by Radu Afrim, will open on Friday at 9 p.m. the 35th edition of the National Theatre Festival (FNT). The event will take place at the Ion Caramitru Hall of the I.L. Caragiale National Theatre in Bucharest.
This year’s edition carries the message “FNT 2025. It’s about you!”, around which 40 performances and several special events will be presented.

The FNT35 curatorial team includes Raluca Cîrciumaru (theatre critic), Alina Epîngeac (theatre critic), and Ionuţ Sociu (playwright and cultural journalist), with Radu Afrim as associate artist. The festival’s visual identity was created by set designer Irina Moscu.

The official selection features 34 productions from theatres in Bucharest and across the country, staged by leading contemporary directors. In addition, three productions by Radu Afrim will be presented in the section “Focus: RADU AFRIM” – “The House Between Blocks” (National Theatre Târgu Mureş – Tompa Miklós Company), “Teatro Lúcido by the Infinite Shore” (Constanţa State Theatre), and “A Day of Joy” (Vasile Alecsandri National Theatre, Iaşi).
Three invited performances are also included: “The Glass Garden”, directed by Petru Hadârcă (Mihai Eminescu National Theatre, Chişinău); “The Viscount”, directed and designed by Slava Sambriş (Luceafărul Republican Theatre, Chişinău); and “Toaca”, a dance performance by Andrea Gavriliu, Mădălina Dan, and Ştefan Lupu, produced in Poland by the Polski Teatr Tańca (a cultural institution of the Wielkopolska regional government, coordinated by Monika Zembrzycka).
The detailed program with performance notes, photo galleries, and video trailers is available at https://fnt.ro/2025. A total of 71 performances are scheduled to take place in 20 theatre venues across Bucharest.
A new space joins the FNT cultural circuit this year: Recul – Remediu Cultural (160 Splaiul Unirii Boulevard), where “It’s Only the End of the World”, directed by Eugen Jebeleanu and produced by Radu Stanca National Theatre Sibiu – German Section, will be staged.

The festival’s events also include five staged readings, in partnership with the French Institute of Romania, the Cervantes Institute in Bucharest, Teatrul Masca, Fani Tardini Theatre (Galaţi), and Regina Maria Theatre (Oradea); four events within the “National Radio Theatre at FNT” module and over 30 radio plays broadcast on Radio România Cultural and Radio România Actualităţi; the screening of seven televised theatre performances in the “TVR Cultural at FNT” section; debates on contemporary playwriting; events under the #implicat micro-section supported by the Austrian Cultural Forum; collaborations with Cricoteka – the Tadeusz Kantor Art Documentation Centre in Poland; and the “FNT Educational” program.
As every year, audiences can also enjoy the Marathon of Book Launches, presenting dozens of new theatre-related titles, hosted during both festival weekends at Modul Cărtureşti (18–20 Academiei Street).

Dragoş Buhagiar, president of UNITER, stated:

“This year’s edition of the FNT is defined by the aesthetics and ethics of the gaze. How do theatre artists look at the crises of the world around them? How do they explore them through the performances of our time? With what honesty do we see and accept our differences?
 For the first time in its history, FNT 2025 has an associate artist – Radu Afrim – a creator who observes today’s world both playfully and lucidly. FNT 2025 is the space and the moment where readings, exhibitions, debates, and book launches create essential encounters, bringing us closer to a vital cultural normality.
 At a time when education is increasingly under threat, we continue the FNT Educational program, bringing theatre closer to hundreds of pupils from Bucharest schools and high schools.
 We invite you to a theatrical marathon that concerns us all – because cultural gestures can bring us together to look at our fears, dreams, and transformations.”

Aura Corbeanu, UNITER Vice President, added:

“The National Theatre Festival represents a benchmark for the quality of productions made in Romania. At the same time, it is a celebration for both theatre professionals and the public. We are delighted that, at this 35th edition, the audience once again validated Romanian creativity and the work of all artists – over 90% of tickets for the 70+ performances were sold within the first three hours of release. We feel fulfilled in having served both the artists and the audience, to whom we bow deeply.”

Details about all FNT35 events are available on www.fnt.ro and on the festival’s official Facebook and Instagram pages.

This year’s edition of the National Theatre Festival is produced by UNITER – The Romanian Theatre Union, co-produced by the Bucharest City Hall through ARCUB – the Cultural Centre of Bucharest, and financed by the Ministry of Culture.

Written by Aura Marinescu |