"BÉZNÁ Theatre [ functions ] according to the principles of that 'theatre-scourge' for which Antonin Artaud had militated to delusion about seven decades ago - theatre that burns like the plague, purified of clichés and, in turn, purifying humanity of the filth of hypocrisy.”                            

— Oana Medrea  (original review in Romanian)

BÉZNĂ Theatre is an award-winning British-Romanian theatre company dedicated to producing engaging political theatre with a global perspective. Our work is intersectional, it empowers audiences, sparks meaningful, provocative conversations and fosters inter-community solidarity. We push the boundaries of what can be explored in the arts and don’t shirk from controversial and challenging subjects.

Our work investigates societal violence, encouraging audiences and readers to arm themselves with knowledge and to create inter-community solidarity at the grassroots level. Our creative process involves in-depth academic research, extensive consultation with experts (academics, activists, professionals) and field-work: travelling to and interviewing people who have personal experience of the issues we are investigating. Paying all interviewees Living Wage/hour (or more when possible) for their testimony, collaboration and careful documenting of their consent are integral to the ethics of our practice.

We have produced 11 critically acclaimed international theatre productions & 13 community interventions, reaching 9000+ internationally, exploring urgent social & political issues.

In January 2020 BÉZNA became Visiting Fellows at the International State Crime Initiative, Queen Mary University, London.

We consider theatre a powerful platform for grassroots activism.

We create socially driven interventionist theatre that challenges inequality through new artistic forms.

We aim to promote empathy, empower our audiences and inspire change.

Does our programming look a little strange? That’s because we work between two different theatre systems. In the UK shows run usually run for a few weeks every day, while in Romania shows enter a repertory system and play once a month for a number of years. By clicking on PRODUCTIONS you can see a list of the shows we have produced and in WHAT’S ON you can see what upcoming shows we’ve got on.

WHO WE ARE

Sînziana Cojocărescu - Artistic director and co-founder

Sînziana is a playwright, screenwriter, dramaturg and theatre director. Trained as a director at Drama Centre London, she co-founded BÉZNĂ Theatre with Nico in 2013. Sînziana directed BÉZNĂ’s debut production in London which explored the dynamics of violent power structures in a prison environment (Deathwatch by Jean Genet). As a director Sînziana has also tackled rape culture and online misogyny (boyz and girlz) and the relationship between capitalism, consumer apathy and the climate crisis (VINOVAT,-Ă). Sînziana has worked on BÉZNĂ's last 5 productions as dramaturg (CRIME, CUNTHATE [ URĂ ], 112, Safar) and writer (VINOVAT,-Ă, ILLEGALISED, wipe these tears, The People’s Tribunal on Crimes of Aggression: Afghanistan Sessions). Sînziana is a screenwriter, her debut TV series script for BAD TEETH (a 15th century feminist vampire revenge story set in historical Wallachia) won the Sitges Film Festival 2021 Online Pitchbox award.

Claire Gilbert - Company producer

Claire is an independent theatre producer with a focus on new, political theatre. As well as working for BÉZNĂ Theatre she is Producer for Squint Theatre, a London-based theatre company that asks big questions about the world through exhilarating and provocative new work and Associate Producer for Out of The Forest Theatre, an ensemble-based theatre company that attempts to redefine the traditional narrative structure of the theatre. She has previously worked for Complicité on The Encounter, A Pacifist’s Guide to the War on Cancer and Lionboy and for Wayward Productions on Grief is the Thing with Feathers.

 ASSOCIATE ARTISTS

Ángel López-Silva - Actor

Ángel López-Silva is  a Mexican actor/performer. Trained in acting at Drama Centre London, clowning with Phillippe Gaulier in France and musical theatre in Kingston college. After graduating in 2014 he was given a role in Nico Vaccari's CRIME with BÉZNĂ Theatre. In 2015 he joined the theatre group Complicite to do a world tour of the play LIONBOY by Zizou Corder (dir. Clive Mendus and James Yeatman and adapted by Marcelo dos Santos), performed at The New Victory Theatre (Broadway), The Tricycle Theatre (London), Baxter Theatre (South Africa) and The National Theatre of Korea (Seoul). He has won "BEST NEWCOMER" awarded by Complicite.

Oana Pușcatu - Actor

Oana trained at the National University for Theatre and Film 'I. L. Caragiale' in Bucharest, Romania and since graduating has worked constantly in both independent and state theatres throughout Bucharest. As well as having worked with BÉZNĂ since Sînziana and Nico moved to Bucharest in 2014, Oana is also employed as an actor at Teatrul Mic (The Small Theatre) in Bucharest and is the lead singer of the band AVENUE.

Dan Balfour - Company Sound Designer

Since graduating from Theatre Sound at The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama in London, Dan has been working solidly designing sound in theatres across the UK. Besides his work with BÉZNĂ, Dan has most recently worked on Effigies Of Wickedness at the Gate Theatre, London and Will Self’s Great Apes at the Arcola Theatre, London. Dan has also worked as Associate Sound Designer for productions like Ingmar Bergman’s Fanny & Alexander at The Old Vic, London and the UK Tour or Duncan Macmillan’s People Places & Things. Dan is a current nominee for best sound design in the 2018 Off Westend theatre awards. 

Lizzie Clarke - Actor

Lizzie trained at Drama Centre & since graduating has worked predominantly in TV and Theatre. In 2016 she won The Stage award for her portrayal of Molly in the production of the same name. Lizzie began working with BÉZNĂ Theatre in 2018 and most recently in their 2019 production ILLEGALISED.  Lizzie is also a writer, writing sociopolitical scripts and her most recent film Ned & Me was funded by the BFI and will be released in 2020. 

iulia isar - Actor & Associate Producer

iulia is a Romanian theatre maker and youth worker. Her work is often a subject of tragicomedy, political theatre, clowning and the bouffon. iulia is committed to creating work that integrates social studies and actively includes migrant communities in its development. After collaborating with BÉZNĂ for the first time in 2020 as an actor, she has been working on writing her first theatre play, r a b d ă, with dramaturgy support from Sînziana Cojocărescu. r a b d ă is a multilingual political clowning performance about the tragicomic aspects of alcohol addiction and its connection to patriarchal violence in post communist societies. 

Nico Vaccari - Co-founder

Nico is a theatre director, playwright and activist. He trained in Theatre Directing at Drama Centre London and co-founded BÉZNĂ Theatre in 2013. His work with BÉZNĂ has investigated the destructive impact of unfettered capitalism and mass-privatisation in post-communist Europe (CRIME), the relationship between interrogation techniques [war], hardcore heterosexual pornography [entertainment] and interpersonal relationships [love] (CUNTHATE [ URĂ ]), patriarchal violence and femicide in Romania (112) and the relationship between capitalism, consumer apathy and the climate crisis (VINOVAT,-Ă). Nico’s production CRIME won special jury prize for best play and best male actor at the FIST festival in Suceava, Romania. 

Iarina Armășelu - Associate producer

Iarina is an emergent theatre producer and lighting designer with a passion for political, migrant-led theatre. She has finished her MA in Creative Production at Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts in 2020. Themes she has approached include inter-generational trauma and Romanian national identity ([REDACTED], Catalyst in the Cloud festival 2020), human rights abuse (Human Human, T3 Exeter festival 2019), addiction (MacbethxTrainspotting, Poltimore Festival, 2019; RABDĂ, 2022), and online radicalisation (Rabbit Hole, 2022).

UK company number: 11253771