Hard winter. Season of partings. Actresses Stela Popescu and Olga Tudorache have departed for eternity. Actor ION ABRUDAN, our fellow citizen, is leaving unexpectedly. In three months he would have turned 80... Maybe to some, especially the young, it will seem like a lot, considering that 80 is an age... but if you think that he spent 56 of them on stage and that he continued to act until the last few days, showing no signs of forgetfulness or fatigue, it's not much.

His colleagues can testify that Ion never looked at the prompter, he always knew the text perfectly and was always attentive to HOW he stepped on the stage: with a respect that his wonderful stage teachers, Ion Cojar, Maestrul Finteşeanu, Moni Ghelerter, Sanda Manu, but especially the distinguished actress Dina Cocea, whose dear student he was, instilled in him... A classmate and friend of Marin Moraru and Gheorghe Dinică, here they are today, perhaps heavenly providence will order them to play great shows on the great stage of the Heavenly Kingdom. Born in Oradea, Ion came to the Theater of his hometown after graduation, debuted on the Oradea stage and continued to play for 56 years... A unique one. He played over 200 roles, in performances of classical and contemporary plays, Romanian and foreign, dramas and comedies, revues, poetry performances. He was the initiator of a famous Caffe-theater inaugurated with the Nicolae Labiş Recital. He interpreted hundreds of main characters, most of them, always being rated as an important actor of the troupe. Attached to his characters, he sought to imprint on them that wave of originality that would make them unmistakable. And so they were.

He worked impeccably with great directors (Radu Penciulescu, Valeriu Moisescu, Sanda Manu, Zoe Anghel Stanca, Mihai Măniuţiu, Alexandru Darie, Sergiu Savin, Anca Bradu, Petru Vutcărău, etc.) He was Alexandru Colpacci's favorite actor, who never missed him in any cast and who was a very good friend. Remarkable roles will remain in the Oradea Theater Documentary, with all the ephemerality of this profession: Ipingescu and Caţavencu in Caragiale's comedies, Ms. Şarl in Alecsandri's Chiriţa, Papură Vodă in Sânziana and Pepelea, George Dandin in Moliere's comedy, Gaev in Chekhov's Cherry Orchard, Oleg Baian in Mayakovsky's Ploşniţa, Bâlea in Mircea Bradu's White Night, the Director of the Philharmonic in Mrozek's Abattoir, Nicodemo in Antonio Gala's Bird Cemetery and many, many more. Hundreds, as I was saying... He played over a hundred times, with fantastic humor, a hilarious character in the show Barefoot in the Park, then a dramatic role in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest...

Let's not forget the nice character Lazar Wolf from The Fiddler on the Roof. He played, He was... these words in the past tense sadden us all the more, as we know how dear he was to THEATRE, how much he loved the stage and with how much sincere love and boundless devotion he dedicated himself to it! For five years, he led, with a rare devotion and dedication, the Oradea Theatre, as head of department and as artistic director, with notable artistic achievements. He was also the unmistakable VOICE of some naughty characters in the animated films from Zone Studio. Children had come to recognize his voice on the street... enjoying the unexpected meeting. Sober, but not bitter, with a fine, demanding humor, sometimes even exaggeratedly respecting the stage, his colleagues, the director, but also the audience, Ion Abrudan was always an example for his young colleagues. Ion Abrudan was passionate about his work on stage, believing that the talent (grace) given by God must be multiplied. That is what he did…for 56 years….

A loving husband and father who adored his daughter, proud of both of them, who in turn adored him, Ion was a good and devoted friend to all of us. What can you say, at the hour of parting, to a friend? Smooth road to eternity, dear Ioane! Smooth road…

Elistabeta Pop 

The coffin with the inanimate body will be placed in the lobby of the Queen Maria Theatre on the date of December 29, 2017, time interval 11:00-13:00, so that all those who knew and loved him could say goodbye. The funeral will take place on the same day, at 2:00 PM, at the Hașaș Chapel in the Rulikowski Cemetery.