05/15/2026
Candan Seda Balaban is the scenographer behind the original costumes for the 2020 production of Wine & Halva (designs still used in the current version), as well as the props, puppetry, and additional costumes for the 2024 production (with elements also featured in the 2026 version).
Born in İzmit, Turkey in 1971, she graduated from Marmara University’s Faculty of Pharmacy. In 1999, she followed her childhood passion and began her artistic career as a mask and puppet designer. She has since become a versatile theatre professional, working as a costume designer, scenographer, actress, and director.
Over her 25-year career, she has served as scenographer for more than 50 productions. Her mask, costume, and puppet designs have earned ten “Best Costume Design of the Year” awards at the National Turkey Theater Awards.
Her adult puppet play project Modes of Pleasure was featured in the U.S.-published book Woman and Puppetry. Between 2022 and 2024, she taught “Children’s and Puppet Theater” at Bahçeşehir University Conservatory’s Theater Department. She has also created, designed, and directed three nonverbal mask theatre shows in Istanbul.
