No later than the end of the Carlist war in the county El Bajo Aragón, a small active bourgeoisie of the town fostered the most characteristic institution from the Romantic period: The Society Liceo de la Unión. This Society aimed to support the Arts (music and theatre). From 1844 to 1881 the Liceo occupied a part of the former convent Convento del Carmen. At the end of 1882 an anonymous association was created to build a theatre. The new coliseum had a modern ornamentation and it was the work of the engineer Alejandro Mendizábal Martín from Zaragoza. It was built on a municipal plot sited in the limits of the former wall of the town. It opened in 1890, August 15. The first piece was a Spanish operetta specially written for the occassion by Benito Illiana and music by the maestro Cirilo del Amo.
The Restoration of the Theatre (1992-1998)
In 1992 the council of Alcañiz conducted the first phase of the restoration works of the theatre. The works were led by the architect Luis Ángel Moreno López. In this phase, the stage machinery was restored. A new stage apparatus was installed fulfilling with the safety measures of the time and the height of the stage was enlarged which makes it possible to keep the stage machinery, the ornaments, the curtains and the drop cloths hidden. The freight and air conditioning were installed too in the street Calle Pruneda, which made it possible to separate the main entrance for the public and the entrance for the stage material. Finally, a new music equipment was installed.
The second restoration phase involved the construction of a new facade in Neomudejar style. The main entrance was built in the new facade which faces the square San José. Consequently, the theatre had to be enlarged and new dressing rooms were built with direct access to the stage. The works also focused on the sanitation of the lateral sides giving onto the streets Calle Pruneda and Calle del teatro. In this phase the plan was to enlarge the hall which, in any theatre, is an important space where people can socialize. The stage was made deeper but the traditional horseshoe structure of the theatre was respected.
