Robe at the Romanian National Opera

	Photo: courtesy of the Romanian National Opera

The Romanian National Opera in Bucharest has invested in Robe moving and LED lights, delivered at the start of the year via the company's Romanian distributor, Senia Music.

The new investments include iFORTES, Spiider LED wash beams, LEDBeam 350s, Tetra2s, and ParFect 150s, totalling over 100 fixtures, a decision that was overseen by the opera's maestro, Daniel Jinga.

Jinga is also the creative director and general manager -- as well as chorus master and principal conductor -- of the Muntenia Symphony Orchestra in Targoviste.

He has been at the Romanian National Opera for four years, where he immediately recognized that a technical upgrade was overdue and set about getting the funding in place.

An upcoming 2026 production of the musical Phantom was a further catalyst in kickstarting the process of installing contemporary production lighting. Jinga led the lighting team into looking for a solution.

The most important change, apart from being able to light shows more imaginatively than before using lights with greater scope and more features, was that the opera has advanced from being dependent on rental and external factors for moving lights, to being practically self-sufficient.

This is a boost for efficient workflow and adds value to the shows, as well as being seriously more cost effective operationally, the company says.

Lighting designer Stefan Dragu has worked at the opera for 30 years and recalls how the previous moving lights in the house, from other brands, were getting old and tired, so the need came to replace them.

The lighting department produced a wish list of essential features for any new luminaires, which included power, functionality, silent running, high CRI, and good shutters, among other things. Robe was unanimously voted as the best choice.

A typical season will see two musicals and one opera running in rep, and over the year there are nearly 40 operas, musicals, and ballets presented in the 1,000-seat classic horseshoe -shaped main auditorium, lit by a giant illuminated chandelier.

The lighting crew of ten will support the lighting designers of incoming shows when there is one, and when there is not, will step up and design lighting themselves in conjunction with that show's producer and director.

"Having the new Robe fixtures onboard has made everything much easier and more streamlined," notes Dragu, mentioning that the huge investment was worth it, making an improvement for every lighting professional working in the building. It is even helping reduce the energy consumption since the older fixtures were replaced.

The current opera house, located in the heart of central Bucharest near the Cotroceni neighbourhood, is a historic monument designed by Octav Doicescu and Paraschiva Iubu, and the stage is notable for offering a large technical area of 78.7' wide by 65.6' deep, with a 98.5' of headroom. The building's facade has striking monumental arches and bas-reliefs celebrating opera and ballet.