MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Plácido Domingo show marks reopening of bullfighting ring for cultural purposes

Colonia's hotel capacity was sold out as Argentines crossed toe River Plate to attend thre event

Spanish tenor Plácido Domingo was the leading attraction on Saturday evening before a crowd of 3,300 at the newly-refurbished San Carlos Bullfighting ring in the Uruguay city of Colonia del Sacramento.

 Domingo, 83, appeared alongside soprano Virginia Tola and mezzo-soprano Nancy Fabiola Herrera as the Plaza de Toros Real de San Carlos Cultural Center was inaugurated over a Zarzuela Gala. Domingo had last been in Uruguay 28 years ago.

A large group of Argentines crossed the River Plate for the occasion, which resulted in a sellout for Colonia's hotel capacity. Uruguayan politicians also attended the event.

The repertoire included “La boda de Luis Alonso” and “Ya mis horas felices,” among the 22 pieces featuring Domingo and the other performers in a manner that would allow the Spanish artist to grasp some air between interpretations.

The Plaza de Toros Real de San Carlos is an entertainment and sports center that reopened for cultural purposes on December 9, 2021, 111 years after its first opening, after. It was restored by the Colonia del Sacramento CCity Hall at a cost of US$ 8 million.

On Jan. 9, 1910, eight bullfights went ahead by a group of bullfighters who traveled especially from Spain for this event. It is the only bullfighting arena in Uruguay and was built in eight months according to the project of the Croatian architect Josip Markovi.

With a neo-Mudejar style very similar to the bullrings of Spain, all its iron structure was brought especially from Great Britain while the material used for its construction was supplied by the brick and mosaic factory La Arenisca.

It has now become a cultural center where many world-class events are expected to follow suit on Domingo's show.

The bullfighting ring has been declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. The Centro Cultural de la Plaza de Toros Real de San Carlos brings together museums, exhibitions, media libraries, outdoor recreational and leisure spaces and gastronomic proposals, and is suitable for shows, conferences, congresses, fairs, festivals, meetings, launches, parades and different interventions.
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