The Principal Theatre of Pontevedra (Teatro Principal de Pontevedra) is a theatre in the

old town In a city or town, the old town is its historic or original core. Although the city is usually larger in its present form, many cities have redesignated this part of the city to commemorate its origins after thorough renovations. There are ma ...

Pontevedra Pontevedra (, ) is a Spanish city in the north-west of the Iberian Peninsula. It is the capital of both the ''Comarca'' (County) and Province of Pontevedra, and of the Rías Baixas in Galicia. It is also the capital of its own municipality whi ...

(Spain).

Location

The Principal Theatre is located in the same block as the

Liceo Casino The Liceo Casino is a neoclassical building from 1878 located in the historic centre of Pontevedra, which houses the oldest cultural and leisure society in Pontevedra, Spain. Location The Liceo Casino is located in the same block as the Pr ...

, being adjacent to it. Its main façade faces Paio Gómez Charino Street and its side façades overlook Don Filiberto and Duque de Tetuán streets.

History

The site of the present Principal Theatre was occupied by the church of St Bartholomew the Elder until the mid-19th century. This late

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the Post-classical, post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with t ...

building was in poor condition by the end of the 18th century. In 1769, demolition began, but it was finally demolished in 1844. After several years as an open square (Tetuán Square), in 1864 a

(work of Domingo Lareu) and the Principal Theatre (work of Faustino Flores), which belonged to the Liceo Casino, were built, inaugurated on 2 August 1878. The theatre was for the exclusive use of members of the

and in fact the entrance to the theatre was through the main façade of the Liceo Casino.. The theatre opened with the company of Miguel Cepillo, who performed ''El esclavo de su culpa'' by Juan Antonio Cavestany.Nieto, Remigio, 1980, Guía Monumental ilustrada de Pontevedra, Pontevedra, Asociación de Comerciantes de la calle Manuel Quiroga, p. 28. Manuel Becerra bought the building at a judicial auction in 1892. In April 1900, this building hosted the first cinema projection in Pontevedra, and in December of the same year, the first

phonograph A phonograph, in its later forms also called a gramophone (as a trademark since 1887, as a generic name in the UK since 1910) or since the 1940s called a record player, or more recently a turntable, is a device for the mechanical and analogu ...

audition. The theatre hosted concerts by renowned artists such as the violinist

Manuel Quiroga Manuel López-Quiroga Miquel (January 30, 1899 – December 13, 1988), better known as Maestro Quiroga, was a Spanish composer especially known for his '' coplas'', ''cuplés'', and ''zarzuelas''. He was also a pianist and one of the group of ...

and the pianist

Arthur Rubinstein Arthur Rubinstein ( pl, Artur Rubinstein; 28 January 188720 December 1982) was a Polish Americans, Polish-American pianist.

. In 1942 the theatre became the property of Dolores Vázquez. In the mid-20th century the theatre functioned almost exclusively as a cinema. On 14 April 1980, a fire destroyed both buildings, although the interior walls and exterior walls remained standing. On 1 July 1983, the plenary session of the municipality of Pontevedra unanimously decided to buy the ruins of the ''Teatro Principal''. On 22 August 1983, the

City Council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, rural counc ...

acquired the ruins of the theatre and on 9 January 1984, an

invitation to tender An invitation to tender (ITT, otherwise known as a call for bids or a request for tenders) is a formal, structured procedure for generating competing offers from different potential suppliers or contractors looking to obtain an award of business ...

was issued for its reconstruction. The current building, inaugurated on 3 January 1987, is the work of the architect José Miyer Caridad, who won the preliminary design competition.

Description

The façade of the theatre is neoclassical. It has symmetrical windows and doors with granite frames, and those on the first floor have

eaves The eaves are the edges of the roof which overhang the face of a wall and, normally, project beyond the side of a building. The eaves form an overhang to throw water clear of the walls and may be highly decorated as part of an architectural styl ...

. The main entrance ends in a

pediment Pediments are gables, usually of a triangular shape. Pediments are placed above the horizontal structure of the lintel, or entablature, if supported by columns. Pediments can contain an overdoor and are usually topped by hood moulds. A pedimen ...

with a hollow arch inside. In July 2015, the façade of the theatre was restored to the white stone walls with which the building was designed in the 19th century. The theatre is spread over five floors and two basements, in which it houses two exhibition rooms and an

auditorium An auditorium is a room built to enable an audience to hear and watch performances. For movie theatres, the number of auditoria (or auditoriums) is expressed as the number of screens. Auditoria can be found in entertainment venues, community ...

with a total capacity of 434 seats. Its stage, which occupies 52 square metres, is equipped with a mobile platform. The interior space has a false ceiling which helps to improve

acoustics Acoustics is a branch of physics that deals with the study of mechanical waves in gases, liquids, and solids including topics such as vibration, sound, ultrasound and infrasound. A scientist who works in the field of acoustics is an acoustician ...

, as well as hiding the

lighting Lighting or illumination is the deliberate use of light to achieve practical or aesthetic effects. Lighting includes the use of both artificial light sources like lamps and light fixtures, as well as natural illumination by capturing daylig ...

installation. Its decorative style sought to combine the look of 19th century theatres with a more contemporary interior.

Gallery

References

Bibliography

* Ayuntamiento de Pontevedra, 1985. ''Pontevedra recupera su Teatro Principal''. Ed. Ayuntamiento de Pontevedra * Fontoira Surís, Rafael (2009): Pontevedra monumental. Diputación de Pontevedra. . * Nieto, Remigio (1980) : Guía monumental ilustrada de Pontevedra. Asociación de Comerciantes de la Calle Manuel Quiroga, Pontevedra. .

Location

History

Description

Gallery

References

Bibliography

See also

Related articles

External links