On Monday, 11 March, the Dan Voiculescu Foundation for the Development of Romania organised a unique cultural event at the National Theatre in Bucharest entitled ‘Crai nou. The Life of Ciprian Porumbescu’, dedicated to National Gratitude Day, an annual tribute project honouring prominent figures in Romanian society.
The event included an exhibition and a theatre performance about the composer's life, directed by Ruxandra Bălașu, with a script by Șerban Fleancu and Ruxandra Bălașu, and set design by Ileana Zirra. The guest of honour at the event was the composer's great-granddaughter, Mrs Scholz Cionca Stanca Emilia, who addressed the audience before the premiere of the show.
"I was raised by my grandmother, the daughter of Mărioara Porumbescu, who instilled in me from the beginning the duty to take care of his legacy as best I could. It's interesting that Ciprian creates myths. He was such a charismatic figure during his lifetime that those who knew him began to invent stories about him. We don't have many documents, but we do have stories and memories from many places. Now we should focus on his writings and his real life. There is still no complete bibliography of his compositions, which is a shame. Only two or three of his compositions are ever played, and he wrote more than 250. This is what we should be focusing on now." said Scholz Cionca Stanca Emilia, the composer's great-granddaughter, who lives in Munich, Germany.
The hall proved too small for those who wanted to experience this emotion. The guests, people of culture, renowned doctors, professors and state officials, were extremely impressed by the story of the Romanian composer's life, played with great talent by the actors: Emilian Mârnea, who played Ciprian Porumbescu, Maria Alexievici, in the role of Mărioara Porumescu, Mihai Căpățînă, Radu Mateucă, Alexandra Stroe, Nicoleta Moscalenco and Vlad Rădescu, known for his memorable role in the biographical film ‘Ciprian Porumbescu’ in 1973, who this time played Iraclie Porumescu, the composer's father.
The end of the show was marked by thunderous applause that kept the actors on stage for several minutes. Before and after the performance, the audience had the opportunity to see the composer's sheet music, vintage photographs, diary excerpts, and documents from the period that are part of the personal collection of the composer's great-granddaughter in the exhibition ‘Ciprian Porumbescu, the life of a genius.’
„Noua Arboroasa", the group that will be involved in promoting cultural heritageale a lui Ciprian Porumescu
The event provided an opportunity to establish a cultural group called ‘Noua Arboroasa’, dedicated to preserving the memory of composer Ciprian Porumbescu. The name of the group is a revival of the student society ‘Arboroasa’, led by Ciprian Porumbescu during his studies in Cernăuți, which was abusively dissolved by the Habsburg Empire. The group, which aims to organise cultural events, is honorarily led by Mrs Scholz Cionca Stanca Emilia and is part of the cultural activities through which the Dan Voiculescu Foundation for the Development of Romania seeks to bring back into the spotlight indisputable national values and popularise them among young people.
