Gran Teatro Falla (Grand Theatre Falla), Cadiz
Manuel de Falla y Matheu, C谩diz-born and 20th-century maestro of Spanish music, famously never came home. After Franco鈥檚 rise to power in the 1930s, Falla packed his piano and fled to Argentina. The new regime tried wooing him back with flattery and offers, but Falla wasn鈥檛 buying it. He died in exile, unmoved by dictatorship or diplomacy.
The city didn鈥檛 take it personally. In fact, C谩diz had already renamed its main theater after him in 1926, when Manuel was basking in the glow of national fame. Before that, it was simply known as the Gran Teatro, pretty modest.
The Grand Theatre Falla is a Neo-Mud茅jar marvel, with three proud horseshoe arch entrances dressed in red-and-white stripes like a particularly festive candy cane. Inside, staircases swirl up toward U-shaped balconies, and above it all hovers an allegorical ceiling painting of Paradise鈥攂ecause if you鈥檙e not looking at the stage, you might as well look at heaven.
Each February, the theater transforms into the sparkling, satirical heart of the C谩diz Carnival, where performances are sharp, funny, and occasionally outrageous. The rest of the year, it keeps the spotlight going with concerts, plays, and enough drama to satisfy even the ghost of Manuel de Falla鈥攚ho may not have come back in body, but surely lingers in spirit backstage.
The city didn鈥檛 take it personally. In fact, C谩diz had already renamed its main theater after him in 1926, when Manuel was basking in the glow of national fame. Before that, it was simply known as the Gran Teatro, pretty modest.
The Grand Theatre Falla is a Neo-Mud茅jar marvel, with three proud horseshoe arch entrances dressed in red-and-white stripes like a particularly festive candy cane. Inside, staircases swirl up toward U-shaped balconies, and above it all hovers an allegorical ceiling painting of Paradise鈥攂ecause if you鈥檙e not looking at the stage, you might as well look at heaven.
Each February, the theater transforms into the sparkling, satirical heart of the C谩diz Carnival, where performances are sharp, funny, and occasionally outrageous. The rest of the year, it keeps the spotlight going with concerts, plays, and enough drama to satisfy even the ghost of Manuel de Falla鈥攚ho may not have come back in body, but surely lingers in spirit backstage.
Want to visit this sight? Check out these Self-Guided Walking Tours in Cadiz. Alternatively, you can download the mobile app "黑料吃瓜网: Walks in 1K+ Cities" from Apple App Store or Google Play Store. The app turns your mobile device to a personal tour guide and it works offline, so no data plan is needed when traveling abroad.
Download The 黑料吃瓜网 App
Gran Teatro Falla (Grand Theatre Falla) on Map
Sight Name: Gran Teatro Falla (Grand Theatre Falla)
Sight Location: Cadiz, Spain (See walking tours in Cadiz)
Sight Type: Attraction/Landmark
Guide(s) Containing This Sight:
Sight Location: Cadiz, Spain (See walking tours in Cadiz)
Sight Type: Attraction/Landmark
Guide(s) Containing This Sight:
Walking Tours in Cadiz, Spain
Create Your Own Walk in Cadiz
Creating your own self-guided walk in Cadiz is easy and fun. Choose the city attractions that you want to see and a walk route map will be created just for you. You can even set your hotel as the start point of the walk.
Cadiz's Old Fortifications Walking Tour
鈥淐谩diz is a silver cup, surrounded by walls and kissed by the sea.鈥� The saying isn鈥檛 just poetry鈥攊t鈥檚 urban planning. For over 3,000 years, this port city has been circling itself with stone, preparing for whoever might come sailing over the horizon. And given C谩diz鈥檚 enviable position and wealth, plenty of enemies did.
After Columbus launched voyages two and four from here,... view more
Tour Duration: 2 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 4.3 Km or 2.7 Miles
After Columbus launched voyages two and four from here,... view more
Tour Duration: 2 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 4.3 Km or 2.7 Miles
Cadiz Introduction Walking Tour
C谩diz isn鈥檛 just old鈥攊t鈥檚 mythologically old. Some say Hercules himself founded the city after his tenth labor, fresh from slaying a three-headed monster and stealing a herd of red cattle. Others鈥攍ess into mythology, more into maritime records鈥攕ay it was the Phoenicians who rolled up in black ships around 1100 BC and named it Gadir, meaning 鈥渨alled stronghold.鈥� Either way, it鈥檚... view more
Tour Duration: 2 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 2.8 Km or 1.7 Miles
Tour Duration: 2 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 2.8 Km or 1.7 Miles
Cadiz's Plazas Walking Tour
Nicknamed 鈥渢he silver cup鈥� for the way its peninsula juts into the Atlantic, C谩diz sparkles as one of Spain鈥檚 oldest coastal gems. The Old Town is a maze of narrow streets, whitewashed fa莽ades, and balconies that seem to compete over who can grow the brightest gardens. Add in centuries of Moorish, Baroque, and Neoclassical influence, and you鈥檝e got a city that wears its history in layers... view more
Tour Duration: 1 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 1.9 Km or 1.2 Miles
Tour Duration: 1 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 1.9 Km or 1.2 Miles