OPINION: Culture icon sidelined

 Hoyporhoy La Prensa, August 2

WHEN THE REPUBLIC was founded, our leaders understood the need for the country to have a cultural emblem, which at the same time could inspire the people, and take us to the great peaks of the arts.

Thus was born the National Theatre in 1908. Thanks to the design of Italian architect Giusseppe Ruggieri, and the masterful touch of Isthmian painter Roberto Lewis, the building was transformed into a jewel of the nation

. During the twentieth century, three major maintenance and remodeling efforts, contributed to preserve a  maximum place  of honor  for  this symbol of our heritage.

The legacy of the apathy of many governments towards all the cultural, and in particular towards the conservation of our heritage, has held this monument hostage.. After a year and a month of closure, it is urgent that the authorities give the restoration of this great house of cultural expressions the priority it deserves.

It is not fair to our history and our citizens who see the National Theatre abandoned.

It is time to lift the curtain and show that culture matters.