Teatro Enrique Molina, Theatre ruin in Concepción, Chile

Teatro Enrique Molina is the surviving neoclassical shell of the auditorium built for the Liceo de Hombres de Concepción on Víctor Lamas street, between Caupolicán and Aníbal Pinto, next to the José Toribio Medina municipal library. Only the main structure and part of the front staircase remain; the decoration was dismantled and the building demolished after the 1960 earthquake. Two gymnasiums of the school complex also stand, damaged but standing after the 2010 quake.

The theatre was built between 1929 and 1935 as the auditorium of the Liceo de Hombres, to a design by architect Onofre Montané Urrejola, who also planned the whole school complex and replaced an 1851 work by the French architect Pierre Dejean. The 1960 earthquake gravely damaged the liceo; the theatre fell into disuse, its decoration was dismantled and it was later demolished, leaving only the front staircase and the main structure.

The theatre is named after Enrique Molina Garmendia, rector of the Liceo de Hombres de Concepción and co-founder and first rector of the University of Concepción. It was built as the auditorium of that secondary school, and former students have led the campaign to restore it since the 1980s through signatures and local events.

The building is fenced off for safety reasons and not open for public access, but you can view the historical structure clearly from Victor Lamas Street. Daytime visits work best when you can see the architectural details from the sidewalk near the Municipal Library.

The theatre was gutted and demolished after the 1960 earthquake, yet its front staircase, main structure and two gymnasiums still stand, surviving the 2010 quake with some damage. Former students of the Liceo have campaigned since the 1980s to restore it; architect Carlos Inostroza won the 2009 competition for the restoration plan.