One might well ask how this preposterously pink belle époque opera house came to be built in a port city in the middle of the South American rain forest.
Step inside and you could be in any opera house in Europe: its decorations and furniture hail from France, its marble from Italy, its porcelain and glass from Venice, and its cast-iron columns and banisters from Britain. The international effort seems to have been worthwhile – more than a hundred years on, the venue is thriving, with a varied repetoire of opera, dance, music, and film.