Andreea Ioana Tănase is half Transylvanian and half Bessarabian. She writes, does improv theater, and collaborates with different social and cultural organizations. She has an MA in architecture and one in dramatic writing. She took part in numerous courses, workshops, and masterclasses in acting, improvisation, dramatic and creative writing, and sound fiction. In 2018, she started writing theater out of curiosity, and she got her professional start in 2019 when she took part in the Drama 5 Residency at Reactor Cluj. In 2021, alongside Alex Lungu, she was the co-writer of the first Romanian mystery narrative podcast, Best Worst Movie. Up to this point, she has written eight plays, of which one was adapted for radio, one was staged online, and four have been staged in independent and state theaters in Romania (Cluj, Piatra Neamț, Bucharest, Oradea) and the UK (London). She likes to work in more unconventional contexts, so she was a writer and performance coordinator for an immersive theatrical experience about access to abortion in Romania, and she wrote a play for a night-moving bus through the streets of Timisoara. In 2022, she won the Scena.ro award for dramaturgy at the Sofia Nădejde Awards Gala. She is deeply in love with Sicily, but she wants to travel more and explore as many and diverse artistic mediums as possible.
All’s well that ends
A divorced young couple, Daria and Radu decide to throw together a divorce party to celebrate new beginnings. Their guests are the people in the audience who get to witness the raw intimacy of a couple in crisis. Flashbacks blend with present scenes in what becomes an almost surgical view of a failed marriage. It is a dramatic and comedic journey which dwells deep into the heart of divorce, exposing every failure on the way. It deals with themes like emotional immaturity, loss and pain, and the inability to balance personal growth with the needs of a couple. The ending brings a new twist on the wedding vows which become a means of untying the knot and a mature attempt of accepting the value of loss.
98% (the right decision)
A seventeen-year-old girl named Iza gets pregnant by pure chance or bad luck. Flashbacks from her life blend with scenes from the present, the latter hanging heavily on her because she has to make a decision about whether to keep the baby or not. It is a coming of age journey about what could be one of the most important decisions regarding a woman’s life. It deals with teen related themes like bullying, womanhood, friendship, love and sex in a world where everybody seems to know what’s better for Iza, except for her.
The day I married myself
A young woman named Dora decides to marry herself in an online Zoom event open to all who want to participate. People get to ask questions and to share their opinions about her choice and things escalate until her event becomes viral. A protest suddenly erupts and journalists are there to find out what the society has to say. The action happens in a multi-character monodrama which questions the idea of a single woman’s status in a traditional society. It is an emotional and humourous journey through loneliness and vulnerability, bringing forward and debating the much needed concepts of self-love and self-care.
Road trip
Three very good friends haven’t seen each other in a very long time. Brought together by an unexpected event, Beatrice, Dora, and Tania go on an adventurous road trip together in a race against the clock. On the way, they try to answer essential questions like: What is the age limit for body glitter?, How do you change a tire on your car at night in the woods while having an existential crisis?, Can a friendship be resumed after years of distance?. They dive back into memories they created and lived together when they were just teenagers, uncover secrets and unknown facts from back then, rediscover each other, and tackle current issues in their relationship. All while rushing to get to their fourth high school friend, who lies in a hospital bed hundreds of kilometers away.
Road trip is a story of friendship behind the wheel. It’s a play with women, about women, and more, for everyone (16+). It tackles issues that millennial women face, talks about what concerns us, what we like, what annoys us, what makes us feel vulnerable, what makes us laugh, and treats the world around us more or less seriously.
The research started with a series of questions: How can you develop the feeling of female solidarity, especially if you didn’t grow up in an environment that nurtured it?, What are the power dynamics within a friendship, and what are the reasons for which this kind of relationship can develop or stop?, How can we relate to internalized misogyny?, What imprint does trauma leave on our inner lives, and how is it reflected in our outward behaviors?, How do you learn a healthy portion of self-care, self-love, and self-confidence?.
