Born in Iași, Kingdom of Romania, Niculescu discovered a puppetry troupe that considered its art theatrical and directed accordingly its projects. The puppet theater at that time was neither structured nor professionalized in Romania; instead small groups of artists drew their characters from folk tradition.[1]
At the same era, the Romanian Communist Party took power and abolished the monarchy, proclaiming the People's Republic of Romania on December 30, 1947. The Party then created a new network of cultural institutions controlled by the state. As part of this effort, Niculescu was invited by the Romanian Ministry of Culture to help bring puppetry to a new level as national theater. In this new field Niculescu began studies at the Institute of Theatre and Film Arts (IATC), and then became director at the Țăndărică Theater of Bucharest. At that time she was 23 years old and remained in this position from 1949 to 1986.[1][2][3][4] As director, she received the Erasmus Prize on behalf of the group in 1978, when it was recognized for being "a colourful and imaginative theatre that has had a fertile influence on post-war puppetry".[5]
In 1985–1986, after 37 years as head of the Țăndărică Theater, Niculescu (with Jacques Felix) launched the International Institute of Puppetry in Ardennes. Three years later, again with Felix, she founded the National School of Puppetry in Charleville Mezieres, and then served as its director from 1987 to 1998.[6][7]
Niculescu died on 19 August 2018 in Charleville-Mézières, France at the age of 92.[8]
