Teatro Municipal de Santiago

The Teatro Municipal de Santiago in the centre of the Chilean capital opened on 17 September 1857 with Verdi's Ernani. President Manuel Montt had decreed its construction in 1853; it was designed in the French Neoclassical style by Brunet des Baines, and after his death in 1855 Lucien Hénault and Manuel Aldunate continued the work. In December 1870 a fire after a performance by Carlotta Patti almost completely destroyed the building; it reopened in 1873 with Verdi's La forza del destino. The 1906 earthquake, another fire in the 1920s, the 2010 earthquake and a fire in 2013 all required further repairs. It has been a National Monument since 1974. The main hall seats around 1,500 and the Claudio Arrau Hall 250. With its own philharmonic orchestra, ballet and chorus, the theatre presents opera, ballet and concerts.