David Schwartz

Biography

David Schwartz is a theatre director and community artist based in Bucharest. He is interested in personal history theatre, documentary film and theatre, as well as art that fosters social emancipation.

He directed the performances Powder Keg (text by Dejan Dukovski, 2007), Get Out! (text by Mihaela Michailov, 2007), Romania! Kiss me (text by Bogdan Georgescu, 2009), Make Room! (text by Mihaela Michailov, 2009), Heated Minds (text by Mihaela Michailov, 2010), I Declare at My Own Risk (text by Alina Serban, 2011) and Under Ground (text by Mihaela Michailov, 2012).

In the framework of 4th Age – a community arts program developed together with the residents of the Moses Rosen elderly home – he took part in several community theatre shows performed by the elder residents: Romanians, change sides! 23 August 1944 (2010), which focuses on the historical event from the perspective of the inhabitants of Rosen Home; Moses Stories (2010), based on personal stories of the residents and Life of Objects (2011), which deals with the relation of the elderly to personal objects.

In collaboration with Mihaela Michailov, he initiated Under Ground (2011-present), a documentary and community arts project based on the stories and perspectives of miners’ communities in post-communist Romania. With Alice Monica Marinescu, he wrote the play Born in the Wrong Place (2011), based on the life stories of refugees living in present day Bucharest. Currently, he is a PhD student at Babeș-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca, and is researching the political and ethical aspects of the inter-actions between artists and marginalized communities.