Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Barcelona's celebrated opera house was first founded as a private theatre in 1847. It was re-
builtafterafirein1861tobecomeSpain'sgrandesttheatre,regardedasabastionofthecity's
late nineteenth-century commercial and intellectual classes -it still has noroyal boxin a nod
toitsbourgeoisantecedents.TheLiceuwasdevastatedagainin1893,whenananarchist,act-
ing in revenge for the recent execution of a fellow anarchist assassin, threw two bombs into
the stalls during a production of William Tell - twenty people died in the bombing. It then
burned down for the third time in 1994, when a worker's blowtorch set fire to the scenery
during last-minute alterations to an opera set. The latest restoration of the lavishly decorated
interior took five years, and the opera house opened again in 1999. Tours depart from the
main entrance and conclude in the modern extension, the Espai Liceu , which also houses a
music and gift shop and café. Meanwhile, the traditional meeting place for post-performance
refreshments for audience and performers alike is the famous Café de l'Opera , just across
the Ramblas.
Inside the Liceu
You'll learn most on the more expensive, hour-long 10am guided tour; the other, cheaper
toursareself-guidedandlastonlytwentyminutes.Highlights includetheclassically inspired
Saló dels Miralls (Salon of Mirrors), unaffected by any of the fires and thus largely original
in decor, and the impressive gilded auditorium containing almost 2300 seats - making it one
oftheworld'slargestoperahouses.The10amtouralsovisitsthe CercledelLiceu ,theopera
house's private members' club, whose burnished rooms feature tiled floors and painted ceil-
ings, and culminate in an extraordinary modernista games room, illuminated by a celebrated
series of paintings by Ramon Casas representing Catalan music and dance. For most of its
160-yearhistorytheCercle membership wasrestricted tomen,untilchallenged by Montser-
rat Caballé - Spain's greatest soprano, born in Barcelona in 1933 - who won a court battle
to become one of the first women to join.
< Back to The Ramblas
Teatre Principal and around
Drassanes
ThebottomstretchoftheRamblasisthe RambladeSantaMònica ,historicallyatheatreand
red-light district that still has a rough edge or two. Across from the Teatre Principal stands
the lavish monumenttoFrederic Soler (1839-95), better known as Serafí Pitarra, the play-
wright, impresario and founder of modern Catalan theatre. Back across the Ramblas, street-
walkers and theatre-goers alike drank stand-up shots and coffee at LaCazalla (Ramblas 25),
underthearchatthestartofc/del'ArcdelTeatre, afamoushole-in-the-wall bar(really justa
street counter), recently restored, that's straight out of sleaze-era central casting. This part of
the street is also where you'll find the Ramblas' resident human statues.
 
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