Sydney Opera House who performed. Sydney Opera House - an architectural masterpiece

The Sydney Opera House is the symbol of Australia's largest city

(English: Sydney Opera House) - one of the most famous and recognizable buildings in the world, is a symbol of the largest city in Australia - Sydney. The sail-shaped roof makes this musical theater unlike any other in the world.

Sydney Opera House recognized as one of the greatest structures in modern architecture and is the hallmark of the city and the continent. Its opening took place on October 20, 1973 in the presence of Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain.

The Sydney Opera House is located in the harbor at Bennelong Point. This name comes from the name of a local Aboriginal and friend of the first governor of Australia. Previously, there was a fort on this site, and until 1958 there was a tram depot.

The architect of the opera house was the Danish architect Jorn Utzon, who received the Pritzker Prize in 2003 for his project.

Despite the ease of manufacturing and installation of parts for spherical shells, the construction of the building was delayed due to the interior decoration of the premises. According to the construction plan, the theater should have taken no more than four years and cost about 7 million Australian dollars, but the opera took 14 years to build and cost 102 million.

Hundreds of the world's best musicians perform at the Sydney Opera House every year. If you love music and are interested in playing musical instruments, then here you can find and buy audio equipment from the world's best manufacturers.

The Sydney Opera House is built in an expressionist style with innovative design elements. Its length is 185 m and its width is 120 m. The opera covers an area of 2.2 hectares. The weight of the building is approximately 161 thousand tons, it rests on 580 piles driven into the water to a depth of 25 m. The electricity consumed by the building is equivalent to a city with 25 thousand population.

The roof of the theater consists of 2194 sections, its height is 67 m, and its weight is about 27 tons. The entire structure is supported by cables 350 km long. The roof of the opera is made in the form of a series of shells, but it is usually called sails or shells, which is not correct from the point of view of architectural design. These sinks are made from triangular concrete panels that are attached to 32 precast ribs.

The roof of the building is covered with 1,056,006 azulejo tiles in white and matte cream colors. From a distance the roof appears pure white, but under different lighting conditions you can see different color schemes. Using the mechanical method of laying tiles, the roof surface turned out to be ideal, which was impossible to achieve manually.

The largest vaults form the roof of the Concert Hall and the Opera House. Other halls form smaller vaults. The interior of the building is made using pink granite, wood and plywood.

Sydney has always been famous not only for its rich flora and fauna, but also for its architectural buildings, most of which follow European trends. But among them one building stands out, which is completely different from all the others. The name of this building is Sydney Opera House.

Sydney Opera

The Sydney Opera House has attracted generations of tourists, being one of the city's most striking attractions. Literally everything about the opera house is interesting - from the jagged roof, location on the water to the ascetic interior decoration. Many tourists are perplexed as to how such a luxurious-looking building can accommodate such modest ceilings and stairs. After all, it seems like there should be red carpets and golden statues here! In a word, the Sydney Opera House conquers many hearts and minds, but where did its history begin?!

The appearance of Eugene Goossens

Upon the arrival of the British composer, the problem of a lack of venue for concerts emerged, and this was despite the excellent hearing of the Australians. Eugene Goossens was amazed at the lack of interest on the part of the authorities in the construction of such a building. After all, it was almost impossible to show your talents in the city hall - the acoustics and the small hall got in the way. In addition, Goossens encountered a clear admiration for the ideas of Western architects, and this, in his opinion, spoiled the appearance of the entire city. After all, no one noticed the beauty of the peninsula, everyone rushed deeper into where skyscrapers arose.

Goossens has always been distinguished by his desire for exquisite beauty and even luxury. He already saw the image of a palace in which he could, without hesitation, organize large concerts, theatrical performances, and delight the public with ballet and opera. After all, the main task is to educate, but how can such an important task be accomplished without a special room, one that could accommodate 4,000 spectators.

Captivated by the idea, Goossens and his friend, the architect Kurt Langer, set out to look for a location. It became Cape Bennelong Point. The place promised to be profitable because it was visited by a large number of people, constantly transferring from ferry to train. However, by that time the cape was decorated with Fort Macquarie, behind which there was a tram depot.

First of all, Goossens turned to Ashworth, a professor of architecture at the University of Sydney. As it turned out, he understood little of Goossens’s idea, but introduced him to the right person - John Cahill, who raised the entire Australian public. So construction opera in Sydney it was soon resolved.

Start of construction

The state agreed to the construction of the theater only on the condition that its financial assistance would not be required for anything. Therefore, an international competition was announced in 1959. Cahill gradually lost his power, he had many ill-wishers, whose machinations managed to send Goossens home and slow down the construction of the Opera.

However, the competition has already attracted worldwide interest and hundreds of entries have been submitted again and again. In addition, Goossens had already selected a jury, which included professional architects, and outlined the plan and components of the Opera. In his opinion, the Sydney Opera House should include a small and large hall, as well as a hall for rehearsal and storage of props. Visitors were sure to sample Sydney cuisine at the fine dining restaurant. This idea required a large area and caused concerns in the design. She should not have been faceless; on the contrary, she should have been the first to be noticed on the surface of the water.

Danish victory

Contestants struggled with the challenge of building on a small plot of land, and only one entry attracted all the judges, who unanimously decided that it was the winner. The Dane Jörn Wotzon placed the Big and Small Theaters close to each other, which solved the problem of walls and did not require layering several rooms, as other architects proposed. The roofs were fan-shaped and fixed to the podium, and the scenery was stored in the platform, and the problem of the backstage disappeared.

The architect himself was not very famous; he lived modestly with his family near Elsinore. Growing up by the sea, Jorn deeply absorbed his love for it. Perhaps this is why many people still notice the similarity of the theater’s shape with a ship that has set off on a long voyage.

Jorn's architectural talent developed in the Danish Royal Academy, then in Sweden. While the cities began to become more and more similar to each other, Jorn's value system was just taking shape. After graduating from educational institutions, Jorn began to introduce his talent to the world, offering to implement a variety of projects. While still a student, he and his friend developed a project for a concert hall for Copenhagen, for which they were awarded a gold medal. Watson's works struck no longer with majestic beauty, but with flights of imagination. It had no right angles or lines. On the contrary, the Dane tried to bring something original, at least the fan-shaped roofs of the Sydney Opera House. His work was hard to miss.

Sydney Opera House - contrasts

The facade of the Opera building evokes different fantasies: some say that it is a galleon, others see in it nine nuns, a white whale or a semblance of frozen music. The Sydney Opera really invites us to unravel its mystery, it invites us to fantasize and whatever we say will be true, because there is no single answer.
The interior of the building, on the contrary, does not fit in with such a loud name of the Opera. There is very little space here, there is almost nowhere to turn around and, alas, it is impossible to stage a large opera. There is only a small hall where only chamber performances can be staged, but if you slightly change its layout, it can easily turn into a disco hall. Just one detail in the form of a huge shiny ball on the ceiling is enough.

The Sydney Opera House is a landmark and fans of this grandiose architectural project had to wait 14 years from the start of construction until its grand opening by Queen Elizabeth II of England on October 20, 1973.

The Sydney Opera House has withstood a lot of criticism: it had to be re-planned, adjustments made to the original sketches, but it still delights us with its view soaring above the water, as if inviting us to soar upward on its tightly stretched sails, soar upward, listening to classical and modern music , plunging into the foggy depths of art.

Tourism

The Sydney Opera House

Geographical position

| latitude and longitude (decimal): -33.856808 , 151.215264

The landscape of the largest Australian city - Sydney - is uniquely recognizable among thousands of other cities in the world thanks to just two elements: the arched bridge Harbor Bridge and the extraordinary building of the multidisciplinary theater, better known as " Opera House» ( Opera House), one of the most famous buildings in world architecture.

The Sydney Opera House recently celebrated its 40th anniversary in a big way, but its history begins much earlier. As early as 1954, the Sydney Symphony Orchestra and New South Wales Conservatoire put forward the idea of creating a Sydney Opera House. The state government has chosen a site for the future building and announced an open international competition for the best design for the opera house.

In Sydney Harbor on Bennelong Point there was once a fort, later there was a tram depot here. It was decided to erect a spectacular building on this site, which will become the face of the city.

By December 1956, 233 applications from 28 countries had already been received. According to legend, the jury had already significantly narrowed the circle of applicants, rejecting most of the projects, when the famous American architect of Finnish origin joined the judges Eero Saarinen. It was he who saw among the rejected options the “clear favorite” - the Dane’s project Jorn Utzon (Jørn Utzon), essentially insisting on his victory. On January 29, 1957, the winner was named - an expressive system of either shells or sails, drawn by Uthon.

In the 1950s There was a change in world architectural preferences: the boring conservative-industrial “international style” with characteristic reinforced concrete “boxes” was replaced by something completely different, expressed in spectacular clean lines of curvilinear forms of clearly natural, organic origin. The new style will be called “structural expressionism” or “structuralism”. One of his supporters was the same jury member Ero Saarinen, who insisted on the victory of the project, now considered an “icon” of structuralism.

The architect decided to make the roofs of the Sydney Opera House from spherical segments of constant curvature. A little later, Jorn Utzon will tell you that the source of inspiration was the peel of an orange, peeled off in triangular segments. The only difference with the building is the scale. The orange for the Opera House would have a diameter of 150 m, and its crust would be concrete, covered with azulejo tiles. The building covers an area of 2.2 hectares. Its length is 185 m and its maximum width is 120 m.

During the implementation of the project, numerous difficulties arose, which led to delays, significant reworking of the original plan and large financial costs. Instead of the planned four years and seven million Australian dollars, the opera took fourteen years to build and cost $102 million (that is, it exceeded the initial budget by more than 14.5 (!) times).

The Sydney Opera House was opened on 20 October 1973 by the Queen Elizabeth II.

The perfectly level roofs of the Sydney Opera House are covered with more than a million tiles. In different lighting, the tiles create different colors, and the reflections of the sun reflected from the water play beautifully on them.

The two largest vaults form the ceiling of the Concert Hall ( Concert Hall) and Opera House ( Opera Theater). In other rooms, the ceilings form groups of smaller vaults. In the smallest "shell" off to the side of the main entrance and grand staircase is the Bennelong restaurant.

The Opera House has always attracted increased attention from professionals. In 2003, architect Jörn Utzon was awarded the Pritzker Prize (the secret equivalent of the Nobel Prize in architecture).

– Sydney Opera House, and even if you haven’t heard of it, you will certainly easily recognize the photo of this unusual sail-shaped structure.

Our story will introduce you closer to this unique building, you will find out why it has gained such popularity among tourists, and you will be able to decide whether it deserves your attention or not.

The history of the Sydney Opera House

The history of the construction of the world famous landmark began in the distant past. 1954 year when the British conductor Sir J. Goossens Having come to work for work, I discovered that there was not only an opera house, but also any other sufficiently spacious room where people could listen to music.
He got excited about the idea of construction and soon found a suitable place - Bennelong Point, where at that time there was a tram depot.
J. Goossens did a lot of work, and so, on May 17, 1955, the Australian government announced a competition to develop a project for a new opera house. Architects from all over the world sent in their projects, but in the end the Dane won J. Watson.
Large-scale construction began, which dragged on for 14 years and instead of the initially calculated 7 million Australian dollars, it required 102 million.
In 1973, the official opening of the Sydney Opera House took place, soon after which the building became the main architectural symbol not only of Australia, but also of Australia as a whole.

Key attractions – what to see at the Sydney Opera House?

Without a doubt, the Sydney Opera House attracts the most attention from people around the world. he is attracted by the easily recognizable roof, which to some resembles sails, to others shells, and others say that it is a symbol of frozen music.

Did you know? Many people think that the roof has a white surface, but in fact, some of its tiles are white, others are cream, due to which, depending on the sunlight, it can “change” color.

But besides the roof, there are many other aspects that make the building truly outstanding. It is surrounded by water on three sides and stands on huge concrete stilts. The area of the theater reaches incredible numbers - 22 thousand square meters. m.!

The theater houses 4 large halls:

Concert hall, which can simultaneously accommodate 2679 visitors;
Opera theatre, designed for 1507 spectators, they perform not only opera, but also ballet;
Drama Theater, capable of accommodating 544 people;
Maly Drama Theater– the most comfortable hall for 398 spectators.

In addition to the main halls, the theater has many other rooms - rehearsal rooms, costume rooms, corridors, bars and restaurants.

Entertainment

Without a doubt, the main attraction of the Sydney Opera House is watching his outstanding plays, performances, operas and ballets. World-famous theater and ballet troupes, as well as orchestras, singers and other artists come here with their performances.

Did you know? The theater can host 4 different performances at the same time!

You can find a poster of upcoming events at Sydney Opera House official website.
If you are not an ardent art lover or have little time, but want to get acquainted with the world-famous structure, this is easily possible.

By visiting one of them, you can not only learn more interesting facts about the famous building, but also visit “behind the scenes” of theatrical life, meet the actors of the troupes and even try theater food. By the way, about food.
There are several good bars and restaurants in the Sydney Opera House grounds. The most popular of them:

Opera Bar– a bar and restaurant, which is also one of the “favorites” among Sydney residents;
Bennelong– one of the best restaurants in Australia, whose chef is P. Gilmore, who prepares original dishes from Australian ingredients;
Portside Sydney– the most suitable friendly family restaurant for a light snack, a cup of coffee or dessert.

Also in the theater building you will find many souvenir shops, offering tourists a very wide selection of pleasant and memorable things.

Where is the Sydney Opera House located?

The famous structure is located in the picturesque Sydney Harbor on Bennelong Point.
You can easily get here from anywhere in the Australian capital, since the intersection of sea and land transport routes is nearby.
GPS coordinates: 33.856873° S, 151.21497° E.

Sydney Opera House opening hours

The theater is open to visitors daily from 9 am (Sunday from 10:00) until late in the evening.

Prices for visiting the theater depend on the purpose of such a visit - either it will be an excursion, or you want to see this or that performance, or you just want to relax and have a delicious meal in one of the theater restaurants - in each case the price can vary significantly.
For any questions you may have, you can contact the theater’s “Info Service” from Monday to Friday by phone. +61 2 9250 7111, or write to email. address [email protected].
The official website of the Sydney Opera House is www.sydneyoperahouse.com.

Sydney Opera House - interesting facts

Author of the Sydney theater project J. Goossens, despite the amount of work he had done, was “exiled” from Australia, because they allegedly found prohibited “Black Mass” items in his possession.
The initial A$7 million to build the theater was raised thanks to charity lottery.
The famous sail-shaped roof significantly worsened the acoustics of the theater premises, and therefore it was necessary to make additional sound reflective ceilings. The roof, by the way, also turned out to be too heavy, and the builders were forced to redo the entire foundation of the theater.
Due to protracted construction, the architect of the Sydney Opera House, J. Watson, encountered difficulties with the Australian government, and he was forced to leave Australia. The theater was completed by another architect.
She came to the opening of the Sydney Opera House herself. Queen Elizabeth II of Britain.
The Sydney Theater has the longest theatrical curtains in the world, and its large concert hall is the largest organ on the planet.
The Sydney Opera House is the first building in the world to be listed as UNESCO World Heritage Site during the lifetime of its architect.
The opera house building is still not completed. To prepare for the 2000 Olympics, the Australian government invited J. Watson to complete the building, but he refused. The famous architect never returned to Australia after the forced cessation of construction.
J. Watson in 2003 received the prestigious Pulitzer Prize for the project of the world famous theater.
Sydney Opera House was a contender for the title of one of the 7 wonders of the world.
Never yet no repairs were required to the famous building.

Sydney Opera House - video

In this video you will learn even more information about the Sydney Opera House. Enjoy watching!

The world-famous theater hides these and many other secrets behind its walls - hurry to see it, touch its secrets and touch the great musical and theatrical art that unfolds behind its scenes every day.

(in English - Sydney Opera House) is a symbol of the largest city in Australia and a landmark of the entire Australian continent. What can I say, even within the whole world this is one of the most famous and easily recognizable buildings. The sail-shaped shells that form the roof of the theater make it unique and unlike any other structure on Earth. Since the building is surrounded by water on three sides, it looks like a frigate sailing.

The Opera building, along with the famous Harbor Bridge, is the hallmark of Sydney, and, of course, all of Australia is proud of it. The Sydney Opera House has been considered a World Heritage Site since 2007 and is protected by UNESCO. It is officially recognized as an outstanding building of world modern architecture.

History of creation

The Sydney Opera House (see photo in the article) was opened in October 1973 by Queen Elizabeth II of England. The building was designed by the Danish architect Jorn Utzon, in 2003 he received a prize for this. The project proposed by Utzon was very original, bright and beautiful; the fan-shaped roofs rising above the bay gave the building a romantic look. As the architect himself explained, he was inspired to create such a project by orange peel, cut into sectors, from which hemispherical and spherical shapes could be made. Indeed, everything ingenious is simple! Experts noted that initially the project did not give the impression of a real architectural solution, but was more like a sketch. And yet it was brought to life!

Construction

On the site where the Sydney Opera House is now located (the territory of Cape Bennelong), until 1958 there was a simple tram depot. Construction of the Opera began in 1959, but seven years later, in 1966, he left the project. Architects from his team continued work, and in 1967 the exterior decoration was completed. It took another six years to bring the building to perfection and complete decorative work. Utzon was not even invited to the opening of the theater in 1973, and the bronze plaque located near the entrance to the building does not contain his name. Nevertheless, the Sydney Opera House itself serves as a monument to its author and creator; every year it attracts thousands of tourists from all over the world. It is worth noting that the building is listed in the Guinness Book of Records.

Architecture

The building occupies an area of 2.2 hectares, the length of the structure is 185 meters, and the width reaches 120 meters. The entire building weighs 161 thousand tons and stands on 580 piles, lowered to a depth of twenty-five meters in the water. The Sydney Opera House is an Expressionist building with an inherently innovative and radical design. The roof frame includes two thousand concrete sections connected to each other. The entire roof is covered with beige and white ceramic tiles - this combination of colors creates an interesting movement effect.

Inside the theater

The Sydney Opera House has five main halls, which host symphony concerts, theater and chamber performances, and the building also has an opera and minor drama stages, a theater studio, a drama theatre, a simulated stage and the Utzon Room. The theater complex also contains other event rooms, a recording studio, four gift shops and five restaurants.

The main concert hall seats 2,679 spectators and also houses the symphony orchestra.
The opera stage has a seating capacity of 1,547, and is also home to the Australian Ballet and the Australian Opera.
The Drama Theater seats up to 544 people and hosts performances by artists from the Sydney Theater Company and other groups.
The Small Dramatic Stage is perhaps the most comfortable hall of the Opera. It is designed for 398 spectators.
The theater studio is a hall with a changing configuration that can accommodate up to 400 people.

Sydney Opera House: interesting facts

In the Opera there hangs the largest one in the world, which was specially made in France according to a sketch by the artist Coburn. It is called the "Sun and Moon Curtain" and each half measures 93 square meters.

In the main concert hall of the theater there is the world's largest mechanical organ with 10.5 thousand pipes.

The electricity consumption in the building is equivalent to the energy consumption of a city with a population of 25 thousand people. Every year, 15.5 thousand light bulbs are replaced here.

The Sydney Opera House was built largely thanks to funds raised from the State Lottery.

Every year the Opera hosts about three thousand concerts and other events, which are attended by up to two million spectators annually.

The Sydney Opera House is open to the general public 363 days a year, except on Christmas Day and Good Friday. On other days the Opera operates around the clock.

Although the stepped roof of the Opera is very beautiful, it does not provide the necessary acoustics in concert halls. The solution to the problem was the construction of separate ceilings that reflect sound.

The theater has its own opera written about it in its program. Its title is “The Eighth Miracle.”

The first singer to perform on the stage of the Sydney Opera House was Paul Robeson. Back in 1960, when construction of the theater was in full swing, he climbed onto the stage and sang the song “Ol’ Man River” for the lunching workers.

In 1980, Arnold Schwarzenegger received the title “Mr. Olympia” in bodybuilding competitions in the Main Concert Hall of the theater.

In 1996, when the Crowded House group gave a farewell concert at the Sydney Opera House, the largest number of spectators in the history of the theater was recorded. This concert was broadcast in all corners of the planet on television.

Finally

The Sydney Opera House is one of the Seven Wonders of the World. On both sides of the ocean, many people come to the conclusion that this is the most beautiful and outstanding structure that was built in the twentieth century. It's hard to disagree with this statement!