Teatro Real

Teatro Real is Madrid’s principal opera house, located beside the Royal Palace. It opened in 1850 and is Spain’s leading venue for opera.

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Opera: A staged musical drama in which singing carries most of the action. Opera is the art form the Teatro Real was built to present.
Isabella II of Spain: Queen of Spain from 1833 to 1868, whose reign saw the Teatro Real’s construction and opening. Her reign supplied the political setting for the opera house’s 1850 inauguration.
Teatro Real Orchestra: The resident orchestra that performs opera and concerts at Madrid’s Teatro Real. It provides the instrumental ensemble for the house’s productions.
Madrid: The capital and largest city of Spain. The Teatro Real is central to Madrid’s performing-arts life.
Teatro Real restoration: The late twentieth-century reconstruction that adapted the Teatro Real for renewed opera use. The restoration transformed the closed theater into a modern opera venue.
Opera house: A performing-arts venue designed primarily for staged opera. The Teatro Real’s architecture and operations belong to this building type.
Plaza de Oriente: A public square in central Madrid between the Royal Palace and Teatro Real. The square’s creation shaped the urban setting around the new theater.
Teatro Real Choir: The resident chorus associated with productions at Madrid’s Teatro Real. It supplies the choral singing required by many staged works.
Royal Theatre of La Monnaie: A historic opera house in Brussels and the home of Belgium’s national opera company. It offers a useful European comparison for a historic national opera venue.
Spanish opera: Opera composed in Spain or shaped by Spanish language, history, and musical traditions. The Teatro Real provides a major Madrid stage for Spanish operatic works.