National Theatre Bucharest, Bucharest, Ghid vizitatori și ce de văzut în apropiere

The National Theatre Bucharest (Teatrul Național București, or TNB) is the Romanian capital's national stage, a large modernist building on Bulevardul Nicolae Bălcescu beside University Square. It matters as both a working cultural institution and a landmark of the city's 20th-century story, from wartime loss to communist-era building and the events of 1989.

The story behind it

The earlier National Theatre stood on Calea Victoriei and was damaged by bombing during World War II. The building you see today was designed in the 1960s as its replacement, and it was altered during the communist period. In the 1980s a heavy concrete canopy was added over the top, and locals nicknamed it "Ceaușescu's cap". Many architects and actors disliked it, and it was taken away during a renovation in the early 2010s, which left the building with a cleaner profile.

The theatre also sits close to the centre of the events of December 1989. University Square, just next to it, was one of the main gathering places of the Romanian Revolution, so this corner of the city links the worlds of performance and political change.

What to look for

• The broad, angular modernist volume of the building, which looks very different from the older stone architecture on nearby Calea Victoriei.
• The open plaza around the entrance, where you can see how the theatre sits between the boulevard and University Square.
• The posters and banners announcing current productions, which show that this is a living theatre and not only a monument.
• The skyline of the top of the building, where the removed concrete canopy once sat, and which now reads as a much cleaner outline.

Tips for your visit

• Allow 15 to 20 minutes to look at the exterior and the square, longer if you want to photograph it from several angles.
• Late afternoon and evening are pleasant, when people gather before performances and the area is lively.
• You normally go inside by attending a performance, so check the current programme and opening hours on the theatre's official channels.
• University Square, the Intercontinental Hotel and Calea Victoriei are all within a short walk, so it combines easily with a wider stroll through central Bucharest.

See it on a quest

On Bucuresti: The Stand-up Comedy Game, you reach the National Theatre on foot as one stop of a longer route through central Bucharest. The app tells you about each place as you arrive and sets a puzzle in what is in front of you, with a comic theme running through the walk. One ticket covers the whole group.

The Vanishing Pharmacist: A Cure for Sadness also passes this part of the city. You walk between the stops at your own pace, hear the story of each place as you get there and solve a puzzle on the spot, which makes the theatre and its surroundings far more memorable than a quick photo. One ticket covers the whole group.