Lleida Theatre
The former municipal del Escorxador ("slaughterhouse" in English), a Modernist building from 1918, has become, thanks to thorough refurbishing works, a beautiful theatre which houses Aula Municipal de Teatre.
Used as a cultural facility since 1998, the building is provided with a room with a seating capacity of 310 and another smaller one for experimental and multi-disciplinary drama. The third stage room is called Cafè Teatre, a polyvalent room suitable for presentations, conventions and paratheatrical activities. Frederic Amat is the author of the impressive painting which dominates in the hall. It is made up of many horns, to remind us of the former use of the building, and seven rigid pieces at its bottom. He also made the three sculptures on the façade (two masks which flank an organic shape).
The Escorxador Theatre is also the headquarters of the Municipal Theatre School. It offers drama studies and interesting performance workshops and monographic courses. The School's production takes a large part of the local theatre calendar and has many pupils of all ages and levels.
The Puppet Theatre Fair succeeds in filling the most typical sites of the pedestrian area -plaça Paeria, plaça Sant Francesc, IEI courtyard and Hort de Santa Teresa- as well as the city theatres with puppet performances thought for both children and grown-ups.
For four days, from 30/04/04 to 02/05/04, there are up to 40 performances throughout the day, and each of them becomes a kind of a shop window, so that programmers from all over the world can hire them. Lleida is provided with the Centre de Titelles, housed in the refurbished Convent de Santa Teresa, situated in the heart of the historical quarter.
Lleida has a Theatre Season. The public building
of Teatre Municipal de l'Escorxador and the privately-owned one
of Teatre Principal combine a wide offer throughout the year.
Its highlights are in summer and in October and November, when
the Mostra de Teatre Ciutat de Lleida takes place. Also in November
there is a programme which provides the city with first-rate theatre
companies from all over Spain and allow the audience to enjoy
the latest performances in fashion. Teatre Principal arranges
its own programme with an average of one performance a month.
Lleida guide