A righteous Romanian in my view

There are many people I admire, respect, or feel that I have something to learn from them
because they are examples of how I would like to be in certain situations. It is hard to choose
one, but I would go down to write about my acting teacher, Mr. Virgil Constantin.
He is currently working at Palatul National al Copiilor, where he is running courses of acting for
children, teenagers and ocassionaly for adults, the times I go there. He’s 68 years old and has a
fourty years experience in teaching. Mr. Constantin started his career as an educator at the
Romanian Electroaparataj in Bucharest. Although that was a factory for providing electricity in
town, on that period of time during the Ceaușescu Era, every institute was forced to have a
cultural department in order to develope independent performances in arts. This is how a lot of
nowadays oldschool actors, painting teachers and folk musicians started their careers. Mr. Virgil
Constantin was responsible for the theatrical department at Electroaparataj, started working there
when he was 29. He had many children and workers to deal with during the years putting on
some good shows with whom won numerous prices, although competing with top 5 high schools
like Coșbuc, Sava, Viteazu or Institute of Arts bands. What is much more interesting is that he
did all of these and also had prepared students to enter the Acting College without finishing it.
He entered the Caragyale National Theatre and Film Academy in 1990 at the age of 38,
graduating at the class of the one to be considered the best educator of this domain, Ion Cojar.
The thing that is also admirable at him is that in everything that he does, he refuses to take any
credits for the succes. Even if it’s about a show that he directs, or the help that he gives to
somebody for preparing to enter college, he always prefers to stay in the shadow, saying that
“this is our work with ourselves and he is only guiding us”. Some memorable quotes from him
are: “You kill me darlin”; “It is much to work kid”; “An actor doesn’t tell any lies, he belives
everything he says because he faces real life situations”; “You can do it, only if you want, that’s
the only condition”; “You sell me popcorn, I don’t buy it.”
Besides his acting exercises, he puts his students to face their fears and from the outside tries to
help them understand and accept them, but not like at therapy session. I learned from him that
the only way we can heal our pain is by dealing with it honestly and accept that can happen
again, although I’ve also got to remember to always see the bright side in everything and
everybody and really mean it, cause the humans turn fake or unstable because of denying God.
Virgil Constantin is name that I will never forget, because of the things that he taught me, not
just fundamental things about acting, but also fundaments of life. I wish I will be half of the man
he is.