Situated in the north top of Rossio Square, it was constructed by Fortunato Lodi and inaugurated in 1846. The new theatre represented also a bourgeois appropriation of the prestigious square redesigned in the pombalino époque. With its architecture discreet decoration, it is different from all the other pombalino buildings. It is characterized also by its black and white waves pavement, which causes a great visual impact and had influenced the decoration of other city’s promenade and square pavements. All around the theatre, the shop and coffee’s animation elaborated a qualified urban life space that is prolonged to Rua do Ouro and above all in direction to the Chiado, the real heart of Lisbon.
A violent fire destroyed its interior in 1964, and it was reopened in 1978, wagered in national products. D. Maria National Theatre counts with a big hall for spectacles and a little studio dedicated to the independent theatre.