Venue: Teatro de la Comedia
Town: Madrid, ES

The Teatro de la Comedia (Comedy Theater) is a theater in Madrid, inaugurated on Calle del Príncipe in 1875 and rebuilt in 1915 after a devastating fire. In 1986 it was designated the headquarters of the National Classical Theater Company and in 1999 it was acquired by said company, along with five other floors of the same building, by the Spanish Ministry of Culture. In October 2015, after being closed for thirteen years for renovation work, it reopened with a performance of The Mayor of Zalamea. After this renovation, the hall has six hundred and thirty seats; in addition, it has a new hall with one hundred seats, called "Tirso de Molina". The theater was started construction in 1874 by the Manchego architect Agustín Ortiz de Villajos, at the request of the businessman Silverio López de Larrainza, who worked in the gambling industry. The architect did not design dressing rooms, believing that the actors would come from their homes already in costume. Upon discovering this mistake, it became necessary to purchase the property behind the theater for adaptation. The lighting was gas-powered, as there was still no electricity in Madrid at that time. The inauguration took place on September 18, 1875, with the presence of King Alfonso XII. A three-act play, Me voy de Madrid, by Bretón de los Herreros, was staged; and a one-act play, Ayer y hoy, by Diego Luque and last, a performance of the play The Full-Length Mirror, starring Emilio Mario. In 1888, the theater began using electric power. The façade was renovated in 1897 by the architect Francisco Andrés Octavio. And in 1899, the theater was sold to a lawyer from La Rioja, Tirso Escudero. On March 23, 1914, a lecture by José Ortega y Gasset entitled "Old and New Politics" took place in the theater, serving as the presentation of the League for Political Education. On April 16/18, 1915, a fire destroyed the roof and interior of the building. The architect Luis Bellido was hired for the reconstruction. Bellido used reinfo