On Friday, 7^th of November, 2025, the "Ion Dacian" Operetta and Musical Theater celebrates 75 years since its first curtain raising. With this occasion, the Bucharest institution organize an event named "My operettas - 75^th anniversary - Tribute and Musical Performance". About the importance of this celebration moment, Prof. Dr. Stephan Poen, special guest of the night, gives us more details in an interview by our colleague, Ioana Țintea.

The 7^th of November marks the 75^th anniversary of the first curtain rising at the State Operetta Theater in Bucharest, now known as the Ion Dacian Operetta and Musical Theater. Mr. Stephan Poen, what did this moment mean for the Romanian culture.

The moment was very important, because at that time there were veteran artists from the Operetta Theater who had made a name for themselves on the Alhambra Theater's stage, which had not existed for three years. So, this group, who was inspired by the extraordinary personality of the maestro Ion Dacian, obtained institutional recognition from the authorities and thus marked the birth of the State Operetta Theater in Bucharest, which, in the first of the three quarters of a century we are now celebrating, was beneficially dominated by the maestro Ion Dacian's personality. Ion Dacian, who was an intellectual, an attorney with a PhD in Law, a musician, a pianist, a violinist, a singer, an actor, an excellent partner, a librettist, a movie director, a teacher, a director, a manager, a human and friend for a lot of artists and to many music lovers. And I, myself, from early childhood, enjoyed the maestro's generosity whom I grew close to and around whom I grew up, I can say, and evolved, having him as a mentor with whom I was in contact until two hours before he left this world.

How would you describe its evolution in these rather turbulent years, if we think about the numerous transformations this institution has been gone?

As I mentioned, the first 25 years were under the Ion Dacian's beneficial influence, who established a true operetta school in Bucharest, contributing to the development and consolidation of three veteran generations of artists, who continued to evolve until the end of their careers; I'll mention a few key names, such as: Silly Popescu, Puica Alexandrescu, Virginia Romanovski, Viorel Chicideanu. Also, a new generation has appeared, cultivated and encouraged by Ion Dacian, which imbued operetta with an interpretative academicism in all of the artistic aspects of theater. Highly prestigious names have made a name for themselves, such as: Valeria Rădulescu, Lucia Roic, Lilli Dușescu, Ștefi Pârvulescu, Constanța Câmpeanu, Marica Munteanu, Valli Niculescu and men personalities as well - Nicolae Țăranu, Anton Negoițescu, Eugen Fânățeanu, Eugen Savopol.

The maestro Ioan Dacian also took care of the young, modern generation, instilling in them a formative spirit and encouraging a new artistic mentality which keeps the pace with the society and the people's evolution. In this regard, Cleopatra Melidoneanu, Dorin Teodorescu, Daniela Diaconescu and many others who deserve a special mention.

Ion Dacian's career ended in 1975, exactly 25 years after the theater was founded.

The next 25 years were a period in which the operetta went through many events. In 1987, I was no longer in Romania, but I was aware of what was happening. The city's center reconstruction required the demolition of the old Regina Maria Theater, where the operetta had been operating for three and a half decades. The absence of a theater meant that operetta had to be performed on many other stages, which was quite uncomfortable and precarious, but nevertheless, the new generations of artists understood and perpetuated Ion Dacian's generation spirit. And operetta din not die out, despite the fact that for years it was performed in improvised theaters.

Of course for several years now, the operetta has had its current headquarters where it carries out a complex activity between classical operetta and musical theater, which led to the theater's name being changed to the Ion Dacian National Operetta and Musical Theater.

I have to mention that in 1991, when the big artist Ludovic Spiess became the Minister of Culture, the first decree he issued was to name the Operetta Theater after Ion Dacian. Later, when Răzvan Dincă expanded the name of the theater to Operetta and Musical, because many valuable musicals where added to its repertoire, it maintained the name of Ion Dacian with dignity and honor.

Today, I enjoy my relationship with the current artists and I'm delighted that on the 7^th of November, on Friday, exactly three quarters of a century after the founding of the Institutional Operetta, I will introduce and moderate an extraordinary recital, where theater artists will perform excerpts from operettas that represent important moments in the history of these last three quarters of a century.

How can the beauty of classical operetta be preserved and conveyed to young audiences accustomed to musical and new forms of entertainment?

The perpetuation of classical operetta can be achieved through two channels. On the one hand, the public must be educated, especially the younger generation, to understand and deepen their knowledge of the ethical, moral, emotional and spiritual values of operetta theater. In operettas, people laugh, cry, fight, are defeated and rise again. Operetta is imbued with many human virtues. Operetta should also be appreciated for its true value. Many arias, duets, and ensembles from classical operettas - by Kalman, Lehar, Strauss and other composers - present virtuosic and aesthetic challenges on par with the opera repertoire. So, on the one hand, the public needs to be aware of the virtues of operetta and the beneficial effects that a well-crafted operetta character can have on the young audience's consciousness, who can learn a great deal, just as I did as a child when I went to the operetta theater.

On the other hand, the second channel would be seriousness and gravity with which operetta genre must be taken into consideration by analytical programs in conservatories. Conservatory students must be equally master the opera repertoire, the vocal-symphonic and oratorio repertoire, as well as the operetta repertoire. Because performing operetta as it is written is a joy, a delight and an artistic satisfaction. Operetta character face other demands beyond vocal virtuosity. They must be actors, dancers, comedians and dramatic actors, combining lyricism and drama with comedy and joviality.

Therefore, Ion Dacian deserves credit for laying the definitive academic foundations of operetta theater in Romania and promoting it through highly successful tours both domestically and abroad.

That's why I consider it's a duty of honour for myself and those who join me to honour the memory of these valuable predecessors, great artists of operetta theater, led by the maestro Ion Dacian.