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Teatro Colon
The Teatro Colon (Spanish) (Colon Theatre) in Buenos Aires, Argentina, is one of the world's major opera houses. The present theatre, the second with that name, opened in 1908 after twenty years under construction. The auditorium is horseshoe-shaped, has 2,487 seats , standing room for 1,000 and a stage which is 20 m wide, 15 m high and 20 m deep. The acoustics are excellent.
The theatre closed for refurbishment at the end of October 2006, with plans to reopen on 2010
The theatre is bounded by the extremely wide 9 de Julio Avenue (technically Cerrito Street), Libertad Street (the main entrance), Arturo Toscanini Street, and Tucuman Street. It is in the heart of the city on a site once occupied by Ferrocarril Oeste's Plaza Parque station.
Before the construction of the current Teatro Colon, opera performances were given in several theatres, of which the first Teatro Colon (see below) and the Teatro de la Opera were the most important. The principal company that performed at the Teatro de la Opera moved to the Teatro Colon in 1908. However, important companies also performed at the Teatro Politeama and the Teatro Coliseo which opened in 1907. For many years Argentina was a prosperous country with a booming economy, and the Teatro Colon was visited by the foremost singers and opera companies of the time, who would sometimes go on to other cities including Montevideo, Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo.
The First Teatro Colon
By the mid-1850s, with the flourishing of opera performed by touring companies, the need for a new theatre became obvious. In 1854 alone, 53 different operas were performed in the city. The first Teatro Colon building, located in Plaza de Mayo, was started in 1856 and opened on 27 April 1857 with Verdis La Traviata, just four years after its Italian premiere. The theatre was designed by Carlos Enrique Pelligrini, father of the future president of Argentina, Carlos Pellegrini, and proved to be a successful venue for over 30 years, with 2,500 seats and the inclusion of a separate gallery reserved only for women. By the 1880s, the need for a modern facility became apparent and the building was sold to the Banco de la Nacion Argentina, with the proceeds used to pay for the construction of a new opera house.
The Present Teatro Colon
The cornerstone of the present Teatro Colon was laid in 1889 under the direction of architect Francesco Tamburini and his pupil, Vittorio Meano, who designed a theatre in the Italian style on a scale and with amenities which matched those in Europe. However, delays followed due to financial difficulties, arguments regarding the location, the death of Tamburini in 1891, the murder of Meano in 1904 and the death of Angelo Ferrari, an Italian businessman who was the financing the new theatre. The building was finally completed in 1908 under the direction of the Belgium architect Julio Dormal who made some changes in the structure and left his mark in the French style of the decoration.
The theatre opened on 25 May 1908, Dia de la Patria in Argentina, with a performance of Verdis Aida and it quickly became a world-famous operatic venue rivaling La Scala and the Metropolitan Opera in attracting the best opera singers. Over the years, the Colon Theatre has hosted such great names as Titta Ruffo, Amelita Galli-Curci, Giacomo Lauri-Volpi, Arturo Toscanini, Jane Bathori, Enrico Caruso, Claudia Muzio, Viorica Ursuleac, Maria Callas, Jon Vickers, Norman Treigle, Beverly Sills, John O'Sullivan, Renata Tebaldi, Alfredo Kraus, Placido Domingo, Astor Piazzolla, Kirsten Flagstad, Erich Kleiber and Luciano Pavarotti.
With excellent acoustics and modern stage areas, the theatre's interior design features a rich scarlet and gold decor. The cupola contains frescoes painted in 1966 by the renowned 20th century artist Raul Soldi during renovation work.
In recent years, given the political and economic circumstances of Argentina, the Colon Theatre has suffered considerably but has now begun a period of slow recovery. The theatre is presently undergoing phased remodeling, and production activities ceased at the end of October 2006 to allow full refurbishment.
The Teatro Colon will be closed until 2010
See also
List of buildings
List of concert halls
External links
History of opera in Buenos Aires
} Informations & pictures about Teatro colon
Website with interior photos of the house
Description of a visit to Buenos Aires' Premier Opera House
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This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article Teatro Colon
