Teatro Maravillas, Historic theatre in Malasaña district, Madrid, Spain.
Teatro Maravillas is a theatre in the Malasaña district of Madrid, but the present venue is not the 19th-century building: the old theatre was demolished and replaced by a new, modest theatre that reopened on 2 November 2005, sharing its site with a block of flats and an Ibis hotel. It is the third theatre of that name in the area.
The first theatre of this name opened in 1887; the third, on the same site area, was inaugurated in 1889 with Ruperto Chapí's zarzuela Las hijas del Zebedeo. From 1919 it was called Madrid Cinema for two years, then alternated film and musical theatre, and after the Civil War specialised in revue. A bomb in Calle de Manuela Malasaña damaged the structure on 15 July 1979; the building was closed in 1999 and demolished, and a new theatre reopened on 2 November 2005.
The theatre's name comes from the Virgen de las Maravillas, and its stage hosted Sarah Bernhardt in 1922, Rosario Pino and Raquel Meller. After the Civil War it specialised in the revue genre, and it reopened in 2005 with the comedians Faemino y Cansado, the same act playing when it was closed in 1999.
The theatre sits on a busy street in Malasaña and is easy to reach on foot from most parts of the neighborhood. Since performances generally take place in the evening, booking in advance is a good idea.
The theatre's stage where Sarah Bernhardt performed in 1922 no longer exists: the old building was demolished during the remodelling and replaced by a new block with flats, an Ibis hotel and a smaller theatre that reopened on 2 November 2005. The current hall is therefore a recent construction, not the 19th-century playhouse.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 93,914 contributors worldwide.