Teatro Jordão

Amidst the bustling avenues of Guimarães, stands a silent sentinel of the city’s vibrant past: the Teatro Jordão. This Art Deco masterpiece, once a beacon of entertainment, now whispers tales of bygone eras. The Teatro Jordão, originally christened the Martins Sarmento Theatre due to a last-minute political decree, first opened its doors on November 20, 1938. Its birth was a response to Guimarães’s desperate need for a proper performance venue, a void acutely felt after the closure of the Gil Vicente and Afonso Henriques theatres. Bernardino Jordão, the city’s electricity concessionaire, envisioned and financed this grand project. He entrusted its design and construction to Júlio José de Brito, the architect behind Porto’s renowned Rivoli Theatre. The construction of Teatro Jordão was a feat of engineering and a testament to the city’s ambition. Imagine the scene: 979 truckloads of sand and gravel, 684 of brick and masonry, 62 train cars of cement, lime, plaster, and marble, and 13 train cars laden with 127,000 kilos of iron! Enough pine was used to build a two-lane road from Toural Square to the Penha Sanctuary. The sheer quantity of materials used would have filled a train stretching 9.2 kilometers long, the distance from Guimarães station to Vizela. Upon its inauguration, the Teatro Jordão could accommodate over 1,200 spectators. It hosted a variety of performances, from theatrical productions to film screenings. The opening night featured a “Serão Vicentino” by the National Almeida Garrett Theatre, a performance that included the Monologue of the Cowboy, the Portuguese Pastoral Auto, and the Auto Mofina Mendes. The air, perfumed with “Silver Night” fragrance, buzzed with excitement. The name “Teatro Jordão” was finally restored in December 1940, after Bernardino Jordão’s passing. The theatre continued to serve the community until its closure in December 1993. Years of silence followed. In 2010, the Guimarães City Council purchased the building, paving the way for its revival. After a lengthy restoration process, the Teatro Jordão was reborn in 2022 as a School of Visual Arts, Performing Arts, and Music. While its seating capacity is now reduced to 400, its spirit remains as grand as ever. The Teatro Jordão stands as a testament to the enduring power of art and community, a place where the echoes of the past harmonize with the promise of the future.