Back to Timișoara briefly, this is the Palace of Culture which was redesigned by Duiliu Marcu to give it this rather distinctive frontage. The building now houses the Romanian National Opera, the Mihai Eminescu National Theatre, the Csiky Gergely Hungarian State Theatre and the German State Theatre which is all rather cosmopolitan of it.
Perhaps the most interesting aspect of this building (to me anyway) is its balcony, a site of immense revolutionary significance where the Proclamation of Timișoara was read on 11 March 1990. This document served as a powerful condemnation of communism, following the execution of Nicolae Ceaușescu at the end of 1989. As the nation sought a new path forward, the proclamation articulated a vision for democratic reform and political transparency. Although these liberal values faced immediate and harsh opposition from those loyal to the previous regime, the balcony remains a symbol of the moment Timișoara was declared the first city in Romania free of communism and this plaque was installed here last year.