Today it is Australia's number one tourist destination, receiving more than 8.2 million visitors a year and one of the busiest performing arts centers in the world, presenting more than 2000 shows 363 days a year for more than 1.5 million people, the result of the work of seven iconic arts companies.
Taken from the official website
Blending ancient and modernist influences and built on a site sacred to the local Gadigal people for thousands of years, the sculptural elegance of the Sydney Opera House has made it one of the most recognizable buildings of the 20th century, synonymous with inspiration and imagination.
As Pritzker Prize judge Frank Gehry said when awarding architecture's highest prize to the Opera's architect in 2003: “[Jørn] Utzon made a building way ahead of its time, way ahead of the available technology… a building that changed the image of the whole country.”
Built to "help shape a better and more enlightened community," in the words of New South Wales Premier Joseph Cahill in 1954, the Sydney Opera House has been home to many of the world's finest artists and performances and a meeting place for matters of local and international importance since its opening in 1973.
Today it is Australia's number one tourist destination, welcoming more than 8.2 million visitors annually and one of the world's busiest performing arts centers, presenting more than 2,000 shows 363 days a year for more than 1.5 million people, the result of the work of seven flagship arts companies that host First Nations art and culture, talks and ideas, theatre and dance, and superstars of classical and contemporary music.
The breadth of these experiences reflects our visionary Act of 1961, which charges the Opera not only with the promotion of artistic taste in all forms of art, but also with "scientific research and the encouragement of new and improved forms of entertainment and methods of presentation."
Design and architecture
But while the Opera House's story is one of breathtaking triumph, it also comes at a personal cost. The building's design was inspired, unlike anything seen before. Pressure mounted on its architect, Jørn Utzon, who left Australia midway through construction, never to see the building completed.
However, Utzon's masterpiece would define his career and redefine Australia's image, both for itself and for the world. A nation-building exercise, as Joe Cahill emphasized, it was an extraordinary collective act of dreaming in public; a work of art constructed to represent works of art and brought to life by people who believed in the power of imagination.
Realizing the dream involved us all: visionaries and pragmatists, politicians and architects, engineers, artists and, most importantly, the people of Australia.
Tapestries in the house
The four tapestries that call the Opera House home reveal fascinating stories about our rich cultural heritage and design legacy.
The Sydney Opera House tapestries – Corbusier 's Les Dés sont Jetés The Die Is Cast (1960), John Coburn Curtain of the Sun and Curtain of the Moon 's Homage to Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach (2004) – are all stunningly beautiful works of modern art.
Renewal
The Concert Hall is the heart of the Opera and its largest in-house venue. As well as home to the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, the Australian Chamber Orchestra, and the Sydney Philharmonic Choirs, it presents an ever-expanding program of contemporary music and performance, talks, comedy, circus, cabaret, and more.
Starting in February 2020, major renovation works will transform the Concert Hall for everyone.
The biggest upgrade to the venue since it opened almost 50 years ago, this multi-million dollar project will result in better acoustics and sound for performers and audiences, more ambitious performances, improved access for people with mobility needs, and a safer environment for staff working behind the scenes.
New theater machinery and a state-of-the-art staging system will ensure that when the concert hall reopens, it will be better equipped to present the full spectrum of 21st - century performance.
How the concert hall will be improved:
- Specially designed acoustic reflectors will replace the clear acrylic 'doughnuts' on stage and acoustic diffusion will be added to the fronts of the wooden box, providing better sound for the performers and the audience.
- A new automated draping system will make it easier to switch from classic to amplified mode.
- Lowering the stage will improve sight lines, create more intimacy between the artists and the audience, and improve access to the backstage area.
- Automated stage lifts will also improve sight lines and allow musicians to hear each other more clearly, accommodating a variety of orchestral configurations.
- A new theater flight system installed above the roof will allow for greater functionality in flying the lighting and stage, facilitating more ambitious and larger-scale performances.
- A state-of-the-art sound system will enhance the amplified performances.
- Accessibility will be improved with a sleek new elevator and walkway, allowing wheelchair users independent access to all levels of the concert hall, including its spectacular north foyer for the first time. Accessible seating will be added in the stalls and rear boxes of the circle.
While the concert hall is closed for refurbishment, all other venues and the wider grounds will remain open, ensuring that the Opera can continue to offer unmissable performances and experiences to the 10.9 million people who come here every year.
