Editing Teatro Colón (section)

===Opening and subsequent history===
[[File:Funcion de gala Teatro Colon 1935.png|thumb|A 1935 gala premiere]]
[[File:Salon dorado del Teatro Colón.jpg|thumb|The ''Salón Dorado'']]
The present theatre, the second with that name, opened on 25 May 1908, after twenty years under construction,<ref>[http://www.haciendoelcolon.buenosaires.gob.ar/puesta-en-valor/historia/1 History of the Teatro Colón from haciendoelcolon.buenosaires.gob.ar (in Spanish)] Retrieved 9 Nov 2010</ref> and was inaugurated with ''[[Aida]]'' by the Italian company directed by [[Luigi Mancinelli]] and tenor [[Amedeo Bassi]], soprano Lucia Crestani (as Aida). The second presentation was Thomas' ''[[Hamlet (opera)|Hamlet]]'' with the baritone [[Titta Ruffo]]<ref>[http://www.operas-colon.com.ar/index1.htm Teatro Colon website (in Spanish)]</ref> During the inaugural season seventeen operas were performed with famous stars such as [[Titta Ruffo|Ruffo]], [[Feodor Chaliapin]] in [[Boito]]'s ''[[Mefistofele]]'', [[Antonio Paoli]] in [[Verdi]]'s ''[[Otello]]''.

The cornerstone of the present Teatro Colón was laid in 1889 under the direction of architect [[Francesco Tamburini]] and his pupil, [[Vittorio Meano]], who designed a theatre in the Italian style on a scale and with amenities which matched those in Europe.  However, delays followed due to financial difficulties, arguments regarding the location, the death of Tamburini in 1891, the murder of Meano in 1904 and the death of Angelo Ferrari, an Italian businessman who was financing the new theatre. The building was finally completed in 1908 under the direction of the Belgian architect [[Julio Dormal]] who made some changes in the structure and left his mark in the French style of the decoration.  The bas-reliefs and busts on the facade are the work of sculptor [[Luigi Trinchero]].

The theatre's opening on 25 May, the ''Día de la Patria'' in Argentina, featured a performance of Verdi's ''[[Aida]]'' and it quickly became a world-famous operatic venue rivaling [[La Scala]] and the [[Metropolitan Opera]] in attracting most of the world's best opera singers and conductors.
[[File:Colon-interior-escenario-TM.jpg|thumb|Concert hall and stage]]
The Teatro was bombed by anarchists in 1910; [[Georges Clemenceau]] was present in Argentina during the attack.<ref name=architecturalreview/> The bomb landed in the middle of the orchestra. Clemenceau describes the attack as follows: "The horror can not be exaggerated. A senior official told me that he had never seen such puddles of blood. The wounded were carried off as best as possible, and the room was emptied by the cries of fury, and the material damage repaired during the day which followed, not a woman of society missed the representation of the morrow. It is a fine trait of character that particularly honours the female element of the Argentine nation. I am not quite sure that in Paris the hall would have been full in such cases."<ref>{{cite book |last=Clemenceau |first=Georges |date=1911 |title=Notes de voyage dans l'Amérique du sud : Argentine, Uruguay, Brésil |trans-title=Travel notes in South America: Argentina, Uruguay, Brazil |url=http://catalogue.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/cb319516000 |language=fr |location=Paris |publisher=Hachette }}</ref>

Ballet stars performed at the Colón alongside Argentine dancers and classical instrumentalists. This included the prima ballerina, [[Lida Martinoli]].<ref>{{cite book|title=The Music Magazine/Musical Courier|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LuQKAQAAIAAJ|year=1953|page=xv}}</ref> When she retired from dancing, Martinoli began to choreograph. She died in [[Santa Fe, Argentina|Santa Fe]]. The tragic 1971 aviation death of two of the best known of these, [[Norma Fontenla]] and [[José Neglia]], was commemorated with a monument in neighbouring Lavalle Square.

With excellent acoustics and modern stage areas, the theatre's interior design features a rich scarlet and gold decor. The [[cupola]] contains canvas painted in 1966 by the 20th-century artist [[Raúl Soldi]] during renovation work.
[[File:Sala Principal Teatro Colón.jpg|thumb|Concert hall and stage ceiling detail with allegorical frescoes painted by [[Raúl Soldi]]]]