Colon Theatre, of Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, Argentina, is one of the 5 best opera houses in the world.
It is notable for its extraordinary acoustics, its size and its trajectory awarded for the performance of the most important national and international figures.
First Teatro Colon
On May, 25, 1957, the theater which was later known as “the first Colón Theater” was inaugurated. Placed in May Square, not only did the most notorious ballet figures dance in its stage but also became a meeting point for the distinguished Buenos Aires personalities of the period. That was so up to 1887, when the building was turned into the State Bank.
Present Teatro Colon
The completion of the second and final building (at least until the present day) of the Colón Theater took twenty years.
The initial project belonged to the architect Francesco Tamburini. Continued to his death in 1891, his partner architect Víctor Meano, also author of the palace of the Argentine Congress. In 1904, Meano was murdered, and the work still unfinished due to financial problems, was assigned to Jules Dormal.
The French style of decoration, and some structural changes were the stamp left by the Belgian architect Jules Dormal. Emulation of the Paris Opera is evident in its facade.
The Teatro Colón stands out for its 58000 square meters. The surface of the dome, is 318 square meters. The stage is 35.25 meters wide, 34.50 deep, and 48 meters high. The central chandelier brought from France has 7 meters in diameter.
The paintings of Marcel Jambon integrated into the dome, deteriorated in the thirties, so in 1970 the dome painting was commissioned Argentine painter Raul Soldi.
The main auditorium horseshoe shaped, meets the highest standards of Italian and French classic theater.
The orchestra pit for 120 musicians, is treated with resonance chamber and special curves sound reflection. It meets all the conditions for a sound that is among the most perfect in the world.
The total capacity of the theater is 2,478 seats and 500 standing spectators.
Its inauguration, on May 25, 1887, was attended by President Figueroa Alcorta. The first function in the Teatro Colón was in charge of the Great Italian Lyric Company with the opera Aida by Giuseppe Verdi.
Since then, Colón Theater is the most important theater as regards opera, ballet and classical music becoming a milestone of national culture.
Teatro Colón from your home
The Teatro Colón presents Colón digital. You can see opera, ballet and concerts from your home. It has an invaluable historical archive where you can find the performances of excellent performers, and magnificent shows of all time. There is also a special program for boys with activities for different age
References:
All graphic material in this report is edited digitally. The customized version by surdelsur.com shown on this page is performed based on the following documents:
- Teatro Colón, Opera House [Photographs and ancient prints] Collection of Photographs of History of Ballet in Argentina, kindly granted by Colon Theater
