The official re-opening is expected to be on May 25, 2008, which marks the centennial of the Teatro Col‹n. The historic theater will celebrate the occasion with Verdi's Aida, the opera that inaugurated the venue in 1908.

According to AFP, the renovation is the first in the Col‹n's century-long history and is expected to cost $25 million. Restoration on other parts of the theater, both interior and exterior, began in 2001. The renovations will respect the classical European design of the opera house.

The Teatro Col‹n has hosted many operatic luminaries, from Enrico Caruso and Maria Callas to Monserrat Caball_, Jos_ Carreras, Luciano Pavarotti and Plšcido Domingo; prominent Argentine-born instrumentalists such as Daniel Barenboim and Martha Argerich regularly return to Buenos Aires to perform in the house as well. Legendary dancers Anna Pavlova, Vaslav Nijinsky and Rufolf Nureyev have also appeared there.