The theater was constructed in 1964 and is located on Avenida Sete, at the west of the 19th-century Neoclassical public area, the Passeio Público.

A group of dissident students, which consisted of Echio Reis, Sônia Robatto, Carlos Petrovich, Othon Bastos, Thereza Sá, and Carmem Bittencourt, led the creation of a permanent theater.

The premiere show of the theater was title Nós, Por Exemplo ("We, For Example") included Caetano Veloso, Gilberto Gil, Tom Ze, Gal Costa, and Maria Bethânia.

[4][1] The theater was a center of the 1960s counterculture movement, Tropicália, and cultural opposition to the Military dictatorship in Brazil (1964-1985).

The style is in stark contrast to the numerous 19th century Neoclassical structures of the Passeio Publico, and of the Palácio da Aclamação.