Theatre Design & Technology - Summer 1980 - 8

1779, Carlos III granted permission to add seating to form a
circle and create a modern bullfighting arena on the site of the
theatre.'
The theatre was first explored sometime early in the eighteenth century by J. L. Velazques, the Marques de Valdeflores. In 1794, a Portuguese antiquarian, Manual Villena,
found several entrances to the theatre, some statues, and a
plaque dedicating the theatre to Marcus Agrippa, which established the date of its construction. In 1888, Pedro Plano,
the mayor of Merida made an exploration of a part of the ruin
with funds from the city and from the Subcommission of Monuments S Fortunately for posterity, these excavations were minor efforts, for when J6se Ramon Melida began excavations
in 1910 he found many of the original statues, decorative
pieces, and columns which had lain hidden from vandals for
centuries. He first saw the site in 1907:
Forgotten, battered, ruined, disfigured, covered with
thick earth which concealed the major part of it and
nourished a bean field: thus I saw it and thus it had
been for several centuries. 6
At this time the theatre clearly deserved the local nickname, "The Seven Chairs." An early photograph shows a
startlingly barren plain, and in the midst of it a semicircle
formed by the top of the cavea, or auditorium, with six depressions between the seating sections, giving the impression of
seven giant chairs.' Melida immediately applied to the Minister of Public Instruction and Fine Arts for the authorization and
the funds to begin. These were granted in October, 1910 and
he began at once, continuing the work until his death in
1933. 8
Even after the excavations were in progress, theatre historians gave little attention to the theatre although they often described the Roman theatre at Sagunto which is not nearly as
well-preserved. The theatre at Merida is mentioned merely in
passing or not at all in books on Greek and Roman theatres. 9

Excavation and Restoration
Melida began excavating at the same spot as the eighteenth-century antiquarian, Villena: by the eastern vomitoria
nearest the orchestra which was the most accessible area. A
photograph taken early in the excavation shows the cavea
filled with earth up to the balteus, or wall, which separated the
lower seating section from the middle seating section. '0 The
earth was being removed in rectangular sections which were
from twenty-seven to thirty feet in depth. In the years between
1910 and 1915, the theatre was completely excavated and
the rich discoveries led to a general demand for a reconstruction of the theatre. Since there had been a fairly limited expectation regarding the remains which might be found, there
had been no original plan for reconstruction, only for excavation. Melida again applied for and received funds from the
Minister of Public Instruction and Fine Arts, and with the architect Antonio Gomez Millan conceived an approach to the
work. Their plan, "consisted of returning to place and order
the colonnades and the rest of the fallen and scattered elements, leaving the pieces which were found broken in that
way and not replacing missing parts.""
A photograph taken after the excavation was completed
shows the cavea with its outline and shape quite clear, the
stone seats having been removed and grass growing over the
area.'2 Three rows of seats-17, 18, and 19 of the ima
cavea--were preserved, as well as part of the stairway leading to them.'3 At the eastern side of the cavea, the aditus maximus was in good condition and had over its entrance the inscription "M·AGRIPPA·L·F·COS·III·TRIB·POT·III" (Marcus
Agrippa, Son of Lucius, Counsel for Three Times and Exercising the Tribunal Power for the Third Time), indicating that
theatre was dedicated to him." The orchestra was partly cov6

Theatre Design & Technology

ered with some soil, but the alternating rectangles of blue and
white marble remained. The base of the proscaenium was all
that remained but its shape was quite clear. The pulpitum was
merely bare ground. The base of the scaenae frons with some
pieces of marble on it could be seen with some stubs of broken columns in place. Lying in disorder throughout the theatre
were statues, columns, and pieces of marble.
The impression given by the theatre from the outside was
quite impressive. The exterior wall of the cavea was in a fine
state of preservation with the granite facing in good condition
up to a height of from nine to twelve feet, and above that the
rough concrete work could be seen. Except for the top sections between the seats which had broken down, the exterior
was very well-preserved as were most of the vomitoria, the
thirteen entrances to the theatre. The system of passages in
the theatre, the praecintio, were in excellent condition. The
street surrounding the cavea was preserved almost intact, and
revealed the design of the builders, allowing the rain water to
run down the sloping sides to a level below the theatre. Drainage was also provided by open conduits at the bottom of the
rows of seating throughout the theatre that drained into a
complex system of canals. One of these passes in front of the
proscaenium and another behind the pulpitum.'5
By 1928 the scae'nae frons was entirely altered. The base
was almost complete, there were three short stairways which
led up to the still-missing portals, more than a dozen columns
were in place (some with their Corinthian capitals), and one
section of columns was capped by an entablature.
Following Melida's death the work on the theatre continued, but the approach to the reconstruction changed. In the
period from 1938 to 1958, the Franco government made
strong efforts to restore many of the national monuments,
partly to create jobs, no doubt, and partly to create a positive
feeling in the country. In 1958, an exposition in Madrid called
"Twenty Years of Monumental Restoration" showed the great
amount of work which had taken place in the theatre at
Merida, especially on the lower colonnade of the scaenae
frons.'6 By 1968, it was nearly completed and work had begun on the second colonnade. The seating in much of the
cavea had been replaced, and the proscaenium was being reconstructed. In the new approach, the theatre would be reconstructed in such a way as to show the original form and
shape, but no effort was being made to deceive visitors or students of theatre by concealing the new work. 17 For example,
the columns which now have sections replaced show the new
parts and the old. Although no attempt is made to hide the
new work, there is an effort to make it blend in. When I was in
the theatre in 1968, the scaelae or stairs, in the lower seating
sections were being replaced, and a workman was laboriously
chipping the concrete with a hammer and chisel to mitigate its
new, hard look.
By 1977 the second colonnade was in place, the piles of
sorted pieces had disappeared, much of the seating had been
replaced, and the aspect of the entire theatre setting had altered. What had been muddy and looked like a worksite was
cleaned up, and the garden behind the postscaenium was
landscaped and the colonnades reconstructed in the ancient
manner using four pie-shaped wedges of brick to create a cylinder. It was, in sum, a total alteration from the prospect which
faced Melida in 1907.

Theatre Today
Today the Roman theatre in Merida has much the form it
must have had originally. It is part of complex of structures
lying to the northeast of the city, surrounded by walls. The
theatre is only a few yards from the amphitheatre, which is
partially restored, and behind and to the east of the theatre
are the un restored baths. The theatre has a very regular VitruUSITI/Summer, 1980

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