DDN
The Ayacucho Theater, designed by Chataing, became an arts and entertainment center for Caracas after its 1925 opening. Barely exceeding 100,000 inhabitants, the city began to see itself as an oil country, after the gush from the Barroso II oil well three years earlier. Radio and movies were a novelty and the construction of the Ayacucho (first theater-cinema in South America) was evi-dence of the capital’s puissance. It was built on colonial foundations on a long lot facing the National Congress in the colonial city center. Its symmetrical façade has references to French acade-micism. It has a large arch resting on two protruding bodies that frame the main access, magnified by four columns and a staircase that led to the access hall. Near the Rialto –also designed by Chataing– and the Continental, the Ayacucho had room for 1300 spectators, between orchestra, balcony and upper tier, displaying the most modern projection system. By 1929 the number of cinemas had increased to ten and the Ayacucho nurtured the capital’s social life. Today, this National Historic Monument, converted into a shopping center with several movie theaters, has been stripped of many of its architectural values, due to an unfortunate intervention in the nine-ties.
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