Alcazar (Marseille)

The Théâtre de l'Alcazar was a famous theater founded in the mid-19th century that was located in the heart of Marseille's Bourse district, on Cours Belsunce, near the Canebière. Since the 1960s, the site has been gradually abandoned; since 2004, it has been home to a municipal library. History The Théatre de l'Alcazar Lyrique opened its doors on October 10, 1857. The inauguration, attended by the town's notables, lasted two days before the public was admitted. The curiosity and envy of the public, heightened by the admiring comments of celebrities on the quality of the show and the service, gave excellent publicity to the hall, which its operators had no difficulty filling. In keeping with the trends of the time, owner Étienne Demolins chose a "Moorish fantasy" style for his café-concert hall, inspired in particular by the Alhambra in Granada. This visionary built the theatre at great expense on a vast site on Cours Belsunce, behind the Old Port and the Palais de la Bourse. The latter of the two was the stables of Transports Brousset, which housed the horses of its imperial omnibuses, then rail omnibuses and other horse-drawn carriages, from "pataches" to large goods wagons. Indeed, with the creation of the in 1856, the stables on Cours Belsunce and Allées de Noailles were moved to Malpassé and Bonneveine.