The ''Teatro Fru Fru (Fru Fru Theater)'' is a theater in
Mexico City
Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley o ...
. It was inaugurated on January 1, 1899 under the name Teatro Renacimiento. In 1973 it was re-inaugurated with its current name. It is located at number 24 in the Donceles Street, in the
Centro Histórico de la Ciudad de México
The historic center of Mexico City ( es, Centro Histórico de la Ciudad de México), also known as the Centro or Centro Histórico, is the central neighborhood in Mexico City, Mexico, focused on Zócalo or main plaza and extending in all direction ...
History
In the place where the theater is located was originally located the Gran Teatro Nacional.
[''Actualmx.com: The Teatro Fru Fru''](_blank)
/ref> When it was demolished, the Teatro Renacimiento was built in its place. The theater was inaugurated on January 1, 1899. It is said that the inauguration was attended by the then President of Mexico Porfirio Díaz
José de la Cruz Porfirio Díaz Mori ( or ; ; 15 September 1830 – 2 July 1915), known as Porfirio Díaz, was a Mexican general and politician who served seven terms as President of Mexico, a total of 31 years, from 28 November 1876 to 6 Decem ...
. But in 1906, the theater is acquired by businessman Francisco Cardona, who decides to rename it with the name of his wife, legendary Mexican actress and theater entrepreneur Virginia Fábregas
Virginia Fábregas García (17 December 1871 – 17 November 1950) was a Mexican film and stage actress active in the early 20th-Century. She appeared in films between 1931 and 1945.
Personal life
Virginia Fábregas García was born on 17 Dece ...
. At that time was a novelty, since it was the first theater in the Mexican capital to own electric lighting. The theater lived a period of splendor at the beginning of the century. But in 1933, the theater began to lose its splendor and changed its name to Teatro Mexicano. However, due to unknown issues, the theater remained closed for several years and was about to be demolished.
In 1973, the theater was acquired and remodeled by Mexican actress and singer Irma Serrano
Irma Consuelo Cielo Serrano Castro (; born 9 December 1933) is a Mexican singer, actress and politician. Famous for her "tantalizing", "untamed spitfire" voice, she is one of the most noted performers of the ranchera and corrido genres; she was ni ...
''La Tigresa''. The actress claims to have acquired the property at an auction of the cement company Anahuac. With an important investment, Serrano reactive the theater baptizing it with the present name. The theater was inaugurated with the controversial theatrical assembly ''Naná'', based on the homonymous novel of Emile Zola
Emil or Emile may refer to:
Literature
*''Emile, or On Education'' (1762), a treatise on education by Jean-Jacques Rousseau
* ''Émile'' (novel) (1827), an autobiographical novel based on Émile de Girardin's early life
*''Emil and the Detective ...
, and produced and carried out by Serrano. The work remained on the billboard with great success for a couple of years.
From that moment, the theater becomes the forum for a series of controversial works produced and some also starring by ''La Tigresa''. Among them stand out montages like ''Lucrecia Borgia'' (1977) or ''Yocasta Reina'' (1978), among others.
In the early 1980s, the theater introduced the concept known as ''Midnight Theater'', created by producer and director Pablo Leder, which was based on works aimed at a strictly adult audience. This situation gave the theater a reputation of controversial and transgressor, although the theatrical montages stood out by a great quality in production.
At the end of 1980s, the theater gradually stopped performing plays. During 1990s, the venue opened its doors for certain seasons as a night club. In 2003, the theater reopens its doors to being rented by Serrano to the entrepreneur Enrique Vidal.
However, after a series of conflicts, the enclosure closed its doors for the second time.
Since then, the venue has reopened its doors for theatrical productions sporadically. In recent times the venue has also served as a space for musical events by bands and artists such as Victimas del Doctor Cerebro, Natalia Lafourcade
María Natalia Lafourcade Silva (; born 26 February 1984) is a Mexican pop-rock and folk singer and songwriter who, since her debut in 2002, has been one of the most successful singers in Latin America. Lafourcade's voice has been categorized a ...
. Gang Gang Dance
Gang Gang Dance is an American band based in Manhattan, New York City. They are known for their distinctive sound which blends elements of psych-rock, ambient electronics, hip-hop, and Eastern music influences with the vocals of singer Lizzi B ...
and The Dresden Dolls
The Dresden Dolls are an American musical duo from Boston, Massachusetts. Formed in 2000, the group consists of Amanda Palmer (lead vocals and piano; additional: keyboards, harmonica, ukulele) and Brian Viglione (drums and backing vocals; ad ...
.
Due to its history and peculiar decorative style, the Teatro Fru Fru has also served as a space for the recording of music videos and films both national and foreign. Among them are ''Cantinflas
Mario Fortino Alfonso Moreno Reyes (12 August 1911 – 20 April 1993), known by the stage name Cantinflas (), was a Mexican comedian, actor, and filmmaker. He is considered to have been the most widely-accomplished Mexican comedian and is cele ...
'' (2014) by Sebastián del Amo, ''Spectre
Spectre, specter or the spectre may refer to:
Religion and spirituality
* Vision (spirituality)
* Apparitional experience
* Ghost
Arts and entertainment Film and television
* ''Spectre'' (1977 film), a made-for-television film produced and writ ...
'' (2015), by Sam Mendes
Sir Samuel Alexander Mendes (born 1 August 1965) is a British film and stage director, producer, and screenwriter. In 2000, Mendes was appointed a CBE for his services to drama, and he was Knight Bachelor, knighted in the 2020 New Year Honour ...
and ''Omen
An omen (also called ''portent'') is a phenomenon that is believed to foretell the future, often signifying the advent of change. It was commonly believed in ancient times, and still believed by some today, that omens bring divine messages fr ...
'' by English duo Disclosure
Disclosure may refer to:
Arts and media
*Disclosure (The Gathering album), ''Disclosure'' (The Gathering album), 2012
*Disclosure (band), a UK-based garage/electronic duo
*Disclosure (novel), ''Disclosure'' (novel), 1994 novel written by Michael ...
.
Legends
* In one of the galleries of the precinct existed in the years 1970's and 1980's a cabaret known as ''La Cueva de La Tigresa'', famous for its daring burlesque
A burlesque is a literary, dramatic or musical work intended to cause laughter by caricaturing the manner or spirit of serious works, or by ludicrous treatment of their subjects. shows.
* In the lobby there is a statue of what appears to be a demon carrying a small tray. According to tradition, the actors must leave some candy as an offering so that their plays won't fail.
* Due to its antiquity, peculiar architecture, decoration and the controversial personality of Irma Serrano, its owner, the theater has been the subject of numerous legends and myths that relate paranormal events inside its doors.''Monstruos y leyendas blog: Ghosts in Mexico City''
/ref>
See also
*Teatro de la Ciudad
The (Theater of the City) was built as the (Esperanza Iris Theatre) in 1918 and is now one of Mexico City’s public venues for cultural events. The theater is located in the historic center of Mexico City on Donceles Street 36.
The former Espe ...
References
External links
''Teatro Fru Fru in Chilango.com''
''TimeOutMexico: Teatro Fru Fru''
''Official Facebook''
{{Cuauhtémoc, Mexico City
Buildings and structures in Mexico City
Theatres in Mexico City
Cuauhtémoc, Mexico City
Historic center of Mexico City
1899 establishments in Mexico
Theatres completed in 1899
20th century in Mexico City
Second Empire architecture
Neoclassical architecture in Mexico