The Great Theatre is located in a building known as the Galician Centre of Havana, constructed to serve as a social center for Galician immigrants to Havana. The theatre has been home to the Cuban National Ballet and, on its main stage, to the International Ballet Festival of Havana. Its facilities include theatres, a concert hall, conference rooms, and a video screening room, as well as an art gallery, a choral centre, and several rehearsal halls for danzarias groups and dance companies.
Originally known as the Galician Centre of Havana, the building is decorated with a stone and marble statue as well as sculptures by Giuseppe Moretti, representing allegories depicting benevolence, education, music and theatre.
The construction of this building, financed by donations of Galician emigrants, began in 1908 and it opened in 1915 with an opera season offered by important artists of the period. In 1985, at the initiative of the prima ballerina Alicia Alonso, the building was renamed the Great Theatre of Havana.
Following extensive renovations, the theatre has reopened on January 1st, 2016 and renamed to honour the Cuban prima ballerina assoluta Alicia Alonso.
The principal venue is the García Lorca Auditorium, with seats for 1,500; it provides a stage for the Cuban National Ballet Company, as well as for other dance and musical performances.
The theatre also presents seasons of the Centre Pro-Art Lírico with its performances of operas, zarzuelas, operettas and concerts, plus the Spanish Ballet of Havana and performances by the Centre of Promotion of the Dance (PRODANZA). In addition, it is the location for the "Arte Lírico", the "Practical Courses of the National School of Ballet" ("CUBALLET"), the "Track of Spain" Festival, and as well the International Festival of Scenic Oral Narration, and several other festivals.
Source: (
visit link)