María Guerrero Theatre
Close to the Art Walk, the María Guerrero theatre opened in 1885 as the Princess Theatre and was declared a Site of Cultural Interest by the Ministry for Culture in 1996. It took its present name in 1931, as a tribute to its last owner, the Spanish actress, María Guerrero.
With the outbreak of the Civil War, the building remained closed until it became a National Theatre in 1940 and began a new era in which its directors included Luis Escobar, Humberto Pérez de la Ossa, Alfredo Marqueríe, Claudio de la Torre and José Luis Alonso. Once the democracy was re-established in 1978, it became the headquarters of the National Drama Centre (which is shared with the Valle Inclán Theatre), under the management of Adolfo Marsillach.
The theatre has a neoclassical main façade and porch. Inside, it has enormous decorative wealth, both in the entrance foyer and in the entrance staircase, with details such as the sculpted medallion or a large oil portrait of the actress, María Guerrero.
Its main hall, with capacity for 622 spectators, stands out for its horse-shoe layout and its decoration in red velvet and gold leaf. The balconies of the boxes, as well as the three floors are made out of iron. Its original ceiling is decorated with a large Neomudejar rose window, made out of hundreds of polychrome crystals and gold leaf. Today, it has a second space, the Princess Hall (where its first cafeteria was located), for small format shows, with a maximum capacity of 120 spectators.
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