The Barceló Theater
Asset of Cultural Interest in the category of Monument
Built in the 30s under the design of the architect Luis Gutiérrez Soto and symbol of the Movida Madrileña, the Barceló Theater It is one of the most outstanding examples of the Madrid rationalist architecture. Witness to Madrid's social and leisure customs, the building was conceived as a cinema, later converted into a theater and finally into a nightclub in the 80s, a use that continues today.
Representative example of the first attempts to assimilate European avant-garde architecture in Spain by one of the prominent members of the Generation of 1925 and a fundamental architect to understand the history of Madrid architecture of the XNUMXth century. With his peculiar style, Gutiérrez Soto managed to make the building become a faithful reflection of the society's fascination with modern life at the time.
The good use of space stands out, the curved chamfer finish with a tower, as well as the volumetric richness provided by the lateral projecting bodies. Likewise, the simple but effective combination of materials and the correct meeting with the neighboring buildings are values that justify its declaration as an Asset of Cultural Interest in the Monument category.
The work of Gutiérrez Soto
The avant-garde trends of European architecture of the XNUMXs were introduced in Spain through the so-called Generation of 1925, mainly active in Madrid, with prominent
members such as García Mercadal, Bergamín (author of Colonia el Viso), Fernández Shaw (author of the Porto Pi stations and the Aragón highway), Sánchez Arcas (Clinical Hospital and Thermal Power Plant of Ciudad Universitaria), Aguirre (Faculty of Philosophy and Letters), Arniches (Residence of Ladies), and Luis Gutiérrez Soto (1900-1977), author of the Barceló Theater. Many of these architects had to go into exile with the Coup d'état of '39, which was not the case of Gutiérrez Soto who developed a long professional career in Spain.
In his outstanding work, both in terms of quality and quantity (more than 650 projects completed), the influence of the Exposition des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes in Paris in 1925 (Art Deco) and the expressionism of the architect Erich Mendelsohn were evident. He knew how to capture the currents of architecture of his time and adapt them to the needs and possibilities of Spanish society, developing a fundamental role in the History of Spanish Architecture of the XNUMXth century.
Some of his notable projects in Madrid are the Zurich Building (1925), the Callao Cinema (1926), the Europa Cinema (1928), Renoir Retiro Cinemas (1939), FNAC-Galerías Preciados (1940) or the Unión Building and The Phoenix (1965).
The Barcelo Theater
Located on a trapezoidal-shaped site at the confluence of Larra and Barceló streets, the building was planned as a cinema in 1930 commissioned by Mr. Nicolás Hermosilla.
The original functional program included a party room in the basement, which had a double-height space in the part that coincides with the cinema room on the upper floors, surrounded by auxiliary spaces, including a bar, toilets and premises. of facilities. This spatial distribution has facilitated its independent functioning from its origin to the present day.
On the ground floor, the entrance was located in the curved chamfer with which Gutiérrez Soto resolved the corner and in the tower with which the chamfer was finished, the projectors for the summer cinema that the architect placed on the roof of the building were located.
The property functioned as a cinema until 1974, the year in which the last film was shown. Although in the 60s they had stopped showing movies on the summer terrace.
The basement party room always remained open, and the cinema was used as a theater between 1975 and 1979.
En In 1980 it opened as a nightclub, Pacha Madrid, becoming one of the most famous venues in Madrid at night. Artists such as Andy Warhol, musicians such as Prince or the Rolling Stones and members of foreign royalty such as Estefanía de Mónaco or Sofía de Habsburg, as well as prominent figures from Spanish culture, society, politics or music, passed through Pachá. In In 2013 it was renamed Teatro Barceló, maintaining its use as a nightclub.
It is relevant to highlight the volumetric game produced by the curved chamfer and the lateral cantilevered bodies of the second floor as well as some elements such as canopies, eaves or continuous and circular windows, which were clearly inspired by the expressionist architecture of Mendelsohn.
In some details of the interior, such as the moldings on the ceilings and walls of the large cinema room and the curved finishes on the stair railings, the influence of Art Deco that Gutiérrez Soto met at the Paris exhibition of 1925 is evident.
A very notable aspect of the original interiors was the avant-garde character of the building At a technical level, highlighting the sound system, the air renewal system or the indirect and progressive lighting system, made in two color tones (blue and white). On the ceiling of the large cinema room, three concentric rings that covered a large part of its oval floor plan produced an effect of weightlessness thanks to strategically hidden luminaires. In the basement ballroom, linear luminaires arranged vertically on the perimeter pillars were completed with suspended spherical luminaires, also present in the main lobby.
All of this, accompanied by the typography used in the exterior signs and the luminous mast with which the curved chamfered tower was crowned, resulted in the playful and festive character that the building had to convey.
