Theater and living in a historical fabric. Calea Moșilor

Authors’ Comment

Why theatre? Why housing? Why Calea Moșilor?
This diploma project proposes revitalizing the Sf. Gheorghe Vechi – Calea Moșilor area through a mixed-use intervention acting as a community catalyst. The choice of the theatre–housing functional pair stems from an analysis of the area’s major deficiencies – absence of cultural infrastructure east of Bd. I. C. Brătianu, advanced building degradation, and lack of vibrant public spaces.
The intervention aims to mend a rupture in the historical urban fabric through a bold gesture that revives the traditional housing model with ground-floor commercial spaces and integrates an activating cultural function – the theatre. Designed as a multi-purpose venue with seven spatial configurations, it can host performances, film screenings, public events, and community activities. One scenario envisions the theatre opening toward the inner courtyard and further into the city, while its strategic position along Calea Moșilor creates opportunities for new modes of public space activation and supports the transformation of the area into a pedestrian cultural route.
The concept is rooted in the idea of a "cut" or incision in the dense built fabric – a cultural enclave around which two distinct types of housing are arranged, corresponding to the adjacent streets. On Calea Moșilor, the proposal includes temporary housing targeted mainly at young residents, with shared amenities such as a gym and a mini-cinema. On Radu Calomfirescu Street, the housing is more private, with 2-3 room apartments facing the street and artist studios opening toward the theatre courtyard.
The façades of the two residential volumes are treated differently to reflect the character of each street, but are unified through a shared architectural language – an interplay of solid and void – and a continuous permeable ground floor. On the interior façades, supporting the “cut in the fabric” gesture, the solid surfaces are made from translucent material, creating a subtle connection between inside and outside. At night, the translucent elements made from U-profile Low-E treated glass with argon inserts become a diffuse light source, acting as a visual beacon of safety in the dense fabric. During the day, they allow improved daylighting while maintaining privacy and thermal comfort.
This intervention seeks to achieve a functional and spatial balance between cultural activity and residential use, offering a framework for coexistence and regeneration. In a context defined by a housing crisis and chronic underfunding of culture, this hybrid program is not just strategic – it is essential, with each function supporting and justifying the presence of the other.
This urban hinge between two types of fabric becomes a platform for the social and cultural regeneration of a forgotten pocket in the heart of Bucharest. Although a small-scale intervention, it can be seen as a first step toward reactivating the historical identity of Calea Moșilor.