Manila Metropolitan Theater
| Manila Metropolitan Theater | |
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| Tanghalang Pangkalakhan ng Maynila | |
Manila Metropolitan Theater
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| General information | |
| Status | Under renovation |
| Type | Theater building |
| Architectural style | Art deco |
| Location | Mehan Garden |
| Address | Padre Burgos Avenue corner Arroceros Street, Ermita |
| Town or city | Manila |
| Country | Philippines |
| Coordinates | 14°35′39″N 120°58′50″E / 14.594205°N 120.980421°ECoordinates: 14°35′39″N 120°58′50″E / 14.594205°N 120.980421°E |
| Groundbreaking | 1930 |
| Inaugurated | December 10, 1931 |
| Renovated | Ongoing |
| Owner | NCCA |
| Technical details | |
| Floor area | 8,239.58 m2 (88,690.1 sq ft) |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect | Juan M. Arellano |
| Civil engineer | Pedro Siochi y Angeles (1886-1951) who is a native of Malabon, Rizal and graduated with a degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Ghent, Belgium |
| Main contractor | Pedro Siochi and Company |
| Renovating team | |
| Architect | Otilio Arellano (1978) |
| Other information | |
| Seating capacity | 1,670 |
The Manila Metropolitan Theater (Filipino: Tanghalang Pangkalakhan ng Maynila, or MET) is a Philippine Art Deco building found at the Mehan Garden located on Padre Burgos Avenue corner Arroceros Street, near the Manila Central Post Office. It was designed by architect Juan M. Arellano and inaugurated on December 10, 1931.
Teatro del Príncipe Alfonso XII was an old theater built in 1862, during the Spanish colonial period. It was located within Plaza Arroceros, near the present-day Metropolitan Theater. In 1876, the old theater was burnt down.
It was in 1924, during the American Colonial period that an idea of constructing a theater in Manila came about. It was approved by the Philippine Legislature to build Senator Alegre’s theater proposal within the Mehan Garden (now Sining Kayumanggi). The construction began in 1930 under the supervision of the engineering firm Pedro Siochi and Company in a 8,239.58 square meters of the park. It was inaugurated on December 10, 1931. This new theater housed different performances from zarzuelas, dramas to translations of foreign classics.
Juan Arellano, one of the first pensionados in architecture, also known for his other major projects such as the Legislative Building and Manila Central Post Office Building, designed the Manila Metropolitan Theater in January 1930. He was sent to the United States to be guided by one of the experts in designing theaters, Thomas W. Lamb of Shreve and Lamb.
The theater’s roof and walls were partially destroyed during World War II. During the post-war period, it was misused as a boxing arena, low-quality motels, gay bars, basketball court and home of the squatters. Restoration was done by Otilio, the nephew of Juan Arellano in 1978. This plan was initiated by Imelda Marcos in December 17, 1978 during her rule as the governor of Metro Manila. Its prestige as a cultural center was redeemed but short-lived. It closed down its doors again in 1996 because of conflict of ownership between the city administration and the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS). Then-president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and then-mayor of Manila Alfredo Lim tried to revive the theater on June 23, 2010.
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