Mario Banushi

Mario Banushi, born in Albania in 1998 and raised in Greece, is a director and performer. He studied acting at the Athens Conservatory and gained recognition in 2020 with his short film Pranvera, which was selected for the 2021 Tirana International Film Festival.

His directorial debut in theatre was Ragada, a performance developed and presented in a private home in Athens during the pandemic lockdowns. In 2023 Banushi premiered his second work, Goodbye, Lindita, at the Experimental Stage of the National Theatre of Greece. The production quickly garnered critical acclaim and a devoted audience, leading to invitations from prestigious international festivals and theatres, including the International Theatre Amsterdam, the Adelaide Festival in Australia, and BITEF in Belgrade. At BITEF, Banushi received both the Special Award “Jovan Ćirilov” and the “Politika” Award for Best Director. His third work, Taverna Miresia – Mario Bella Anastasia, premiered in July 2023 at the Athens Epidaurus Festival. It has been touring internationally since early 2024. These three works are often referred to collectively as Romance Familiare – a term meaning “family romance” in Albanian.

Banushi’s most recent work, MAMI, premiered in February 2025 and continues the visual and poetic language of his earlier work – described as a performance of “visual excellence with a dash of magic.” The production received widespread acclaim following its French premiere at Festival d’Avignon 2025, with Le Monde and Libération praising its emotional depth and distinctive theatrical vision.

Banushi is an Onassis AiR Fellow for 2023–2024 through the Dramaturgy Fellowship.