The Theater was built under the sponsorship of Agrippa, Augustus' son-in-law, between 16 and 15 BC, when the Colony was promoted as the provincial capital of Lusitania. Like the adjacent Amphitheater, the Theater was partially built on the slope of a hill, substantially reducing the construction costs. The rest was built with concrete covered with ashlars. Although the Romans were not very fond of theater, a prestigious city could not fail to have a building for theatrical performances. The one in Augusta Emerita was particularly generous in its capacity: about six thousand spectators. They were distributed from bottom to top according to their social rank in three sections of seats, caveas summa, media, and ima, separated by aisles and barriers. All the seats were easily accessed from radial staircases distributed throughout the caveas. Passageways led to the access gates or vomitories.