While Ibsen's plays were not performed with great frequency in Romania, historical sources suggest that he had a significant impact on national acting and staging practices. To address this contradiction, Gianina Druta investigates the performance history of Henrik Ibsen in the Romanian theatre between 1894 and 1947, combining Digital Humanities and theatre historiography. This investigation of the European theatre culture and the way in which the foreign influences on Romanian theatre were distilled by local Ibsenites provides new insights into processes of cultural transmission. Thus, this study presents an unpredictable and uniquely European landscape that escapes essentialist definitions.

While Ibsen's plays were seldom performed in Romania in the first half of the 20th century, historical sources highlight his strong impact on the national theatre practice. To address this contradiction, Gianina Druta approaches the reception of Ibsen in the Romanian theatre in the period 1894-1947, combining Digital Humanities and theatre historiography. This investigation of the European theatre culture and the way in which the foreign acting and staging traditions influenced the Romanian Ibsenites provides new insights into mechanisms of aesthetic transmission. Thus, this study presents a European theatre landscape whose unpredictability and uniqueness cannot be confined to essentialist interpretations.