Havana Jai alai

About

Jai alai fronton, also known as the Palacio de los Gritos ("Palace of Screams"), is an abandoned jai alai court in Havana, Cuba. Located at the corner of Calles Concordia and Lucena in the neighborhood of Centro Habana, it was inaugurated on 10 March 1901 and remained active until 1 January 1959. Promoted by the Spanish-born Mazzantini brothers, the fronton quickly became a major venue for Basque pelota in the Americas and a focal point of Havana’s early 20th-century sporting culture. The venue earned its nickname from the intense shouting of fans and bettors during matches. Today, the structure stands partially in ruins and has been annexed by residential construction, but remains a notable landmark in the urban and cultural history of Havana.

It is located behind the Hermanos Ameijeiras Hospital, on the site of the former Casa de Beneficencia, at the intersection of Calles Concordia and Lucenas near Calle Belascoain. It is in an area that had been considered in the early part of the city as a place to locate the helpless and the unwanted (Casa de Beneficencia, Hospital de San Lázaro, the Espada Cemetery, Casa de Dementes de San Dionisio), it was the edge of the city and the countryside known as the "basurero"; the spectator stands were parallel to Calle Concordia, the front wall of the court faced Calle Lucenas, east in the direction towards Old Havana.