Costa Rica National Theater

Costa Rica National Theater is located in Avenue 2 between streets 3 and 5 in the San Jose city area. The construction of the grandiose National Theater in Costa Rica was finished in 1897. The National Theater was built during the decades when Costa Rica had received an important flow of income from coffee exports. Around the world coffee had become an important part of the cultural development of the time so the demand for the fabulous Costa Rica coffee was really high. Before this epoch in which Costa Rica’s commerce and economy flourished the country was isolated from the rest of the world and it was greatly impoverished. During the raising of the coffee exports an economical, political, and social influential class was born, the oligarchic class. The oligarchs of Costa Rica decided the course of Costa Rica regarding political, economical, social, and cultural matters as they were the wealthiest, best educated, and thus the most influential families in the country. During the last half of the 1800’s the role model of culture and social behavior was defined by the way of life of the Europeans and so the National Theater was designed to resemble a European theater.

During the year of 1890, an important and well known European prima donna, was touring around Central America. Unfortunately she did not make an appearance in the flourishing Costa Rica as there was no suitable theater in which she could perform. Immediately the coffee oligarchs of Costa Rica decided that a theater needed to be built. A Belgian architect was hired to build and supervise the construction of a theater that will not lack any of the charm of the Paris theaters. Painters were brought from France and Italy. Steel structures and Italian marble was brought from Europe. The lavish national theater of the growing Costa Rica was inaugurated on the 19th of October of 1897; seven years after Costa Rica oligarchs decided that is should be built. The grand opening of the National Theater in the performing arts enthusiastic Costa Rica, was celebrated with the performance of Faust by the Paris Opera accompanied by its huge corps de Ballet.

The grand National Theater turned out to be a masterpiece with a pink marble foyer, gigantic murals with themes of the Costa Rica ways of life and commerce, including the famous five colones memorial bill with the harvesting of banana depiction (which although absolutely lovely and well painted has many inaccuracies regarding harvesting of bananas, coffee, and the traditional dress code of Costa Rica women). Inside the Costa Rica extravagant National Theater you will find 22.5 karat laminated ornaments and mahogany furniture, bronze and crystal chandeliers, an amazing rotunda painted in Milan by Arturo Fontana the same year of the inauguration of the National Theater, and a horseshoe shape three story auditorium that can seat up to 1040 spectators centered by a imposingly large crystal chandelier. The auditorium floor of the elaborate Costa Rica National Theater can be raised with a twelve men powered winch to become a ballroom. The entrance has classical renaissance statues that represent dance, music, and fame. In other parts of the National Theater there are allegorical figures of comedy and tragedy.

The plush Costa Rica National Theater was created mainly from the taxes collected from the Costa Rica citizens from every import consumed by them. Initially, the Costa Rica oligarchs imposed a tax on themselves from every bag of coffee that was being exported, but this altruistic tax didn’t last for more than three years. For a limited time plans were made to transfer the tax to raise enough funds to build the magnificent National Theater to the importers of goods, but this tax plan was also discarded. Finally, they decided getting the funds from the citizens that bought imported goods was a better idea (and most definitely a witty economical move as during this time in Costa Rica there were almost no industries that produced assembled goods, so pretty much everything needed to have a normal life style was imported).

The splendid Costa Rica National Theater was declared a National Monument in 1965. In 1991 it underwent a lot of damage after a big earthquake, but thankfully to the huge efforts of many citizens, donations were collected and the historical National Theater of Costa Rica was able to reopen its doors and keep presenting the best artistic events to enhance culture, music, and arts at a national and international level. Currently the National Theater has regular performances every week and is responsible for promoting artistic spectacles of great cultural quality while maintaining the beauty and splendor of this historical national monument.