Candide ili optimizam (Candide, or Optimism) | Dir. Hrvoje Korbar (Premiere: 20 October 2023) | Marin Držić Theatre, Dubrovnik | Photograph: Vedran Levi
Paola Lugarić Benzia’s Full Profile is Live
BRUSSELS / PULA – With the Pluartis Symposium 2026 set to convene in Pula on 20 August, our focus for this month comes full circle as we officially unveil the dedicated feature page for scenographer Paola Lugarić Benzia. As our community prepares to gather in Istria to explore questions of heritage, environment, and physical form, Lugarić Benzia’s architectural stage environments – conceived by an artist born in this very coastal town – offer a compelling spatial companion to the dialogues taking shape this week.
Formed through a background in sculpture, Lugarić Benzia treats the performance space not as a static backdrop, but as a live, active participant in the dramaturgy. Her work explores the subtle tensions between volume, light, physical movement, and spatial atmosphere. By pairing realistic execution with conceptual, highly adaptable interventions, utilizing materials like textiles to generate three-dimensional weight and fluid motion, she builds environments that remain open to layered interpretation.
Her extensive portfolio spans major national institutions, encompassing drama, children’s theatre, television, and monumental opera productions. From lead set design credits for La Traviata, Norma, Yerma, and Ero the Joker, to her nominated scenography for Puccini’s The Girl of the Golden West at HNK Ivana pl. Zajca, her practice consistently investigates how constructed space shapes human narrative.
We invite you to step into her architectural world on her new feature page, explore her comprehensive production history, and view the curated gallery of her stage designs and spatial installations.