Teatro Principal

The Teatro Principal, in Alicante

The Teatro Principal is the main theatre of Alicante, an elegant neoclassical building inaugurated in the middle of the nineteenth century, in the time of the commercial prosperity of the town. The Alicante audio-guided tour stops here to evoke this high cultural place, born from the will of the rich local traders, with its fine Italian-style horseshoe hall, dear to the heart of the people of Alicante.

The theatre of the traders of Alicante

You now have on your left the theatre of Alicante, that, as its name indicates, is the main theatre of the town. Its construction goes back to 1845, at a time when Alicante prospered thanks to a trade that extended as far as America. It was then that a group of rich traders, great landowners and aristocrats of the town gathered and decided that Alicante should have a theatre worthy of its culture. There were indeed one or two halls where performances were improvised, but nothing comparable to what was emerging in the great European cities. Seventeen days were enough for this group of twenty-one people to organise itself, for the town hall to cede the necessary plots and for the project to be accepted. It was an architect of Alicante, Emilio Jover Pérez, who was put in charge of it. He chose the neoclassical style, with a portico of six Doric columns and a triangular pediment, and the works of the future New Theatre began on the 2nd of January 1846. Partially destroyed by bombardments during the Spanish civil war, the building was the object of a mobilisation of the inhabitants, who fought for it to be rebuilt rather than transformed into a bank or offices, as was often the case. It was then renovated by the famous architect Juan Vidal Ramos in the 1940s. Inside unfolds a fine classical horseshoe-shaped hall, called Italian-style, with magnificent sculpted balconies, where the greatest names of Spanish music have performed. A historic theatre and a local pride, the Teatro Principal is a fine stop of the discovery of Alicante.

What to see

Here you admire the main theatre of Alicante, an elegant neoclassical building with a portico of six Doric columns and a triangular pediment, whose works began in 1846 on the initiative of rich traders of the town; partially destroyed during the civil war then renovated by Juan Vidal Ramos, it shelters a fine Italian-style horseshoe hall with sculpted balconies. The Teatro Principal is a pride of Alicante. It is a fine stop, to be explored on foot.

Practical information

The Teatro Principal lies in the heart of Alicante, reachable on foot. You admire its neoclassical façade from the street; for shows or tours, it is best to enquire about the programme and the conditions of access, which vary. You discover it during a walk in the centre.

When was the Teatro Principal of Alicante built?

Its works began on the 2nd of January 1846, on the initiative of a group of rich traders and aristocrats of the town who wanted to endow Alicante, then prosperous thanks to the trade with America, with a theatre worthy of its culture; of neoclassical style, it was partially destroyed during the civil war then renovated by Juan Vidal Ramos in the 1940s.

Where is the Teatro Principal in Alicante?

In the heart of Alicante, in Spain.