The Teatro Municipal of Caracas is an

opera house An opera house is a theatre building used for performances of opera. It usually includes a stage, an orchestra pit, audience seating, and backstage facilities for costumes and building sets. While some venues are constructed specifically for o ...

Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...

. It was inaugurated by President Guzmán Blanco in 1881. The theatre was initially named after the president.

Construction

The building was designed by Esteban Ricard, a

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

architect who left Venezuela before the project was completed. It was finished under the direction of the Venezuelan engineer

Jesús Muñoz Tébar Jesús Muñoz Tébar ( Caracas, 17 January 1847 – 21 September, 1909) was a Venezuelan engineer, soldier and politician, Minister of Public Works on five occasions during the government of Antonio Guzmán Blanco. He was the Minis ...

. The building incorporates structural ironwork imported from

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...

, as there was no domestic production at the time. In 1896, President Joaquín Crespo commemorated General José Tadeo Monagas by erecting a statute of him in front of the theatre in a move for political unity. The building was modified in 1949 to facilitate redevelopment of central

Caracas Caracas (, ), officially Santiago de León de Caracas, abbreviated as CCS, is the capital and largest city of Venezuela, and the center of the Metropolitan Region of Caracas (or Greater Caracas). Caracas is located along the Guaire River in the ...

Repertoire

It is one of the oldest opera houses in South America; it opened on January 4, 1881, with Italian composer

Errico Petrella Errico Petrella (10 December 18137 April 1877) was an Italian opera composer. Life and career Petrella was born at Palermo, capital of the Kingdom of Sicily. A conservative of the Neapolitan school, he was the most successful Italian compose ...

's 1858 opera '' Jone'', which was revived for the centennial of the theatre in 1981 with noted Argentine soprano

Adelaida Negri Adelaida Negri (12 December 1943 – 17 August 2019) was an Argentine operatic soprano who recorded and performed at leading opera houses. She was known for roles in operas by Puccini and Verdi. Life Negri was born in Buenos Aires. She trained as ...

in the title role.Fernando Battaglia, "La JONE di Petrella, ovvero la rivoluzione solitaria dell' ultimo cantastorie", liner essay for ''Jone'', Bongiovanni LP set GB 2010/11/12, Bologna, 1982. by It continues to mount operatic productions. but it is no longer the city's main opera house since the

Teresa Carreño Cultural Complex The Teresa Carreño Cultural Complex (''Complejo Cultural Teresa Carreño''), also known as Teresa Carreño Theater (''Teatro Teresa Carreño''), is the most important theatre of Caracas and Venezuela, where performances include symphonic and pop ...

opened in the 1980s. The Teatro Municipal is the home of the .

References

External links

* Opera houses in Venezuela Cast-iron architecture in Venezuela Theatres completed in 1881 1881 establishments in Venezuela {{Venezuela-struct-stub