The Teatro Puerto Rico was a music hall focused on the Latino community in the South Bronx section of New York City. During the 1940s to 1950s it presented la farándula, a vaudeville-style package of Spanish-language events, and attracted entertainers from all over Latin America. In the late 1960s, the neighborhood where the theater was located was in decline and the theater closed its doors until 1994. That year a real estate developer invested funds in renovations. After two years in operation, a political scandal involving misappropriated public funds forced the permanent closure of the theater. The building which the theater once occupied is now used as a place of religious worship.
Historical background
Located at 490 East 138th Street, at the corner of Brook Avenue in the Mott Haven section of the Bronx, the theater was built in 1917. It opened its doors in February 1923, under the name of the Forum Theater. The theater, which had 2,300 seats, was a popular gathering spot which provided vaudeville shows and later movies, first for the German immigrant families who lived in the area and then for the Irish and Italian families who came after them. The Forum Theater, which was owned by the Ansel family, struggled to survive and compete with the arrival of the larger modern movie theaters such as Loew's and RKO.
"The Great Puerto Rican Migration" Three factors contributed and led to what became known as "The Great Puerto Rican Migration" to New York. These were the Great Depression, World War II, and the advent of air travel. The Great Depression which spread throughout the world was also felt in Puerto Rico. Since the island's economy had been made dependent on that of the United States, the U.S. economic crisis was felt on the island, as well. Unemployment rose steeply and, consequently, many families fled to the U.S. mainland in search of jobs.
The outbreak of World War II opened the doors to many of the migrants who were searching for jobs. Since a large portion of the male population of the U.S. was sent to war, there was a sudden need of manpower to fulfill the jobs left behind. Puerto Ricans, both male and female, found themselves employed in factories and ship docks, producing both domestic and warfare goods. The new migrants gained the knowledge and working skills which in the future would serve them well. The military also provided a steady source of income.
The advent of air travel provided Puerto Ricans with an affordable and faster way of travel to New York. A common denominator amongst all the migrants was their desire for a better way of life than was available in Puerto Rico. Although each one held personal reasons for migrating, the decision was generally rooted in the island's impoverished conditions, as well as the public policies that sanctioned migration.
It wasn't long before the Puerto Rican barrios in the South Bronx, Spanish Harlem, Manhattan's Lower East Side and Brooklyn's Atlantic Avenue began to resemble "Little Puerto Rico's" with their bodegas (small grocery stores) and piragueros (Puerto Rican shaved ice vendors) in every corner. It is estimated that from 1946 to 1950 there were 31,000 Puerto Rican migrants in New York.
"Teatro Puerto Rico"
Puerto Rican music flourished with the likes of Rafael Hernández and Pedro Flores, who formed the Trio Borincano and gained recognition in the city. Myrta Silva, who later joined Hernandez's Cuarteto Victoria, also gained fame as a singer after the group traveled and played throughout the United States.
Like other newcomers before them, the Bronx's newly arrived Latinos converted existing theaters for their own use. The South Bronx became a hub for Puerto Rican music. Theaters which served previous groups of immigrants, such as the Irish and the Italians, to stage their dramatic works or vaudeville style shows, now served the growing Puerto Rican population with musical performances from musicians throughout the island.
In 1948, the Forum Theater (briefly named the Brook Theater) was renamed Teatro Puerto Rico and began presenting Hispanic stage shows that attracted patronage from all over the Greater New York area. It was not just the main concert spot for Latino performers in New York, attracting stars from all parts of Latin America, it was one of the few places where Puerto Rican families from all over New York City could gather to celebrate their culture.
