Pablo Tobón Uribe Theatre

In front of you is one of Medellín's best-loved stages. This route ends here, and here, every December, the myths of all Antioquia begin.

1A theatre long in coming

In 1952 the businessman Pablo Tobón Uribe donated one million pesos to give the city a modern theatre. The city provided the land and the national government a grant. The works suffered delays and were halted in 1958 for lack of funds. Although it opened its doors earlier, the official inauguration took place on 2 August 1967. It seats 883 people.

2The parade of myths

On 8 December 1974 Medellín held its first parade of myths and legends, with the Madremonte, the Patasola, the Sombrerón and the witches among its earliest characters. Today it sets off from this theatre and crosses downtown at night, with troupes from all over the region.

In front of the theatre, the fountain holds the Bachué by José Horacio Betancur, first shown in 1954. It depicts the mother goddess of the Muisca people who, in their myth, rose from a lagoon carrying a child.

3The headless Italian

Among Medellín's urban ghost stories, the newspaper El Colombiano recorded the tale of a headless Italian who haunts the theatre's basement. Nobody has ever said who he was or when he might have died.

The theatre and the parade are verifiable history; the Italian in the basement is a story passed from mouth to mouth.

4What to look for

• The Bachué, with her snakes and eagle.
• The canopy over the entrance.
• The park around the theatre, beside the open stretch of the stream.