Teatre Zorrilla, Italian theater in Badalona, Spain

Teatre Zorrilla is a theater featuring a horseshoe-shaped floor plan characteristic of 19th-century Italian theater architecture, with ornamental details reflecting that historical period. The stage and seating areas follow this classical arrangement, which organizes the entire interior space of the building.

The theatre was founded by Miquel Perejoan i Lladó and Martí Amigó i Banús, who between 1843 and 1868 bought plots totalling 1,400 square metres. It opened on 31 October 1868 with José Zorrilla's play Traidor, inconfeso y mártir, becoming the city's second theatre. From 1905 it also served as a cinema, from 1954 under the name Cine Aya, until 1970. Badalona City Council bought it in 1986 and reopened it on 21 January 1999 as the Centre d'Arts Escèniques de Badalona.

The name honours José Zorrilla, who attended a homage at the theatre on 3 January 1869 and returned on 2 February for the switch-on of Badalona's gas lighting. The stage hosted Catalan theatre stars such as Margarida Xirgu, Raquel Meller and Enric Borràs, whose Manelic in Guimerà's Terra Baixa was premiered here on 13 June 1897.

The theater is located within walking distance from various parts of Badalona and is easy to access from the city center. Check ahead to confirm that a performance is scheduled on your preferred date, as shows do not run every evening.

The theatre's facade still reads, carved in stone, "Cine Aya. A i Z. Teatro Zorrilla." — a trace of the years 1905–1970 when the hall worked as a cinema, from 1954 under the name Cine Aya. The original entrance was on Carrer de Mar; after the reforms it moved to Carrer del Canonge Baranera, 17, and the old doorway now serves as an emergency exit.