Foro Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz

Photos: Courtesy of Teatro UNAM

The Foro Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz was conceived as an alternative stage with some reference to a historic corral de comedia. It was original designed to host experimental theater for up to 250 spectators. The Foro was built between 1977 and 1978 along with the Juan Ruiz de Alarcón Theater to which it is adjoined. The space opened in 1979 with a performance of A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

The stage space was designed to be adapted to each performance, giving the director greater control over the spatial relationship between stage and audience. The stage area gets changed according to each performance. It has been used as an arena, black box, and as a performance space in the style of an Elizabethan theater.

The space generally gets put to use for alternative theater. This has included a wide variety of contemporary theater productions and many historic performances. During peak seasons, the Foro will offer two different plays per weekend, with occasional performances for kids, and space for disabled audience members. Programming has included artistic performance and musicals. The annual UNAM Cervantino Festival takes advantage of the space nearly every year.

The Foro Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz is also a central part of the University Cultural Center and especially of the UNAM theater scene.