Teatro de la Ciudad
Teatro de la Ciudad, or Theater of the City, is a public cultural venue in Mexico City’s historic center, at Donceles Street 36. It opened in 1918 as Teatro Esperanza Iris (Esperanza Iris Theatre) on the site of the old Teatro Xicoténcatl.
It was named after Esperanza Iris, a famous operetta singer from Tabasco who performed in Mexico City, Havana and Madrid. Iris helped fund part of the theater with her earnings. The building was designed by Capetillo Servín and Federico Mariscal and based on Milan’s La Scala.
The theater opened on May 25, 1918, two days after Iris returned from South America. President Venustiano Carranza attended, and the first show was La Duquesa del Bal-Tabarín, with Iris singing several numbers.
For years it was the city’s main cultural venue, until the Palacio de Bellas Artes opened in the 1930s. International stars like Enrico Caruso and Anna Pavlova appeared there. Iris even lived in the theater’s foyer and had a private box. By the time she died in 1962, the theater was largely abandoned.
In 1976 the city took ownership and renamed it Teatro de la Ciudad to promote culture. A remodeling fire damaged much of the building, and it remained closed until restoration work from 1999 to 2002. The renovation reinforced the structure, updated decorations and improved acoustics.
In 2008 the city restored the name Esperanza Iris and added a cabaret space. Today the theater hosts concerts and performances by Mexican and international artists, such as Pablo Milanés, Ballet Nacional de Cuba, Betsy Pecdanins, Lila Downs and Alberto Cortez. In May 2010 it celebrated its 92nd anniversary as part of Mexico’s Bicentennial celebrations.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 23:35 (CET).