Each of the architectural creations has its own character and soul, they all have their own history of creation. Many of them are gray, monotonous and dull, some are funny or original. But there are buildings - giants, they do not have to be huge, the main thing in these structures is the impression they make and the power they have over a person.

The Sydney Opera House is just one of these amazing buildings. This business card Sydney and all cultural Australia. Sydney Opera theatre but it has an unusual and even a little tragic story ...

How did the construction of the opera house begin?

In 1955, the government of New South Wales decided that Sydney needed its own Cultural Center, after all, the Australians are no worse than the stiff snobs of the British and advanced Americans! It was decided to build a building on a cape, which, like a protruding tongue, protrudes into Sydney Harbor. had to be built whole complex halls and rooms under one roof, so that in one place there is an opportunity to make global productions, give concerts, stage modern musicals and vaudeville, and besides, you can have a chic dinner and just have fun.

223 architects from all over the world competed for the right to design the Opera House in Sydney. And the project of a not particularly famous Dane with an unpronounceable name Jorn Utzon won in this competition. The beauty of his idea was that the building actually had no walls, amazing vaults in the form of shells or sails rested directly on the foundation. Thus, an architectural creation, open to views from all sides (after all, it stands on a peninsula), visually acquired the lightness and swiftness of a sailboat!

Fate plays with man, and man ... builds an opera house

The trouble was that Utzon's project was actually a sketch, an artistic sketch. Therefore, at first it was not possible to calculate the real costs of money and time. Newspapers trumpeted that the construction would be completed in 4 years and would cost $7 million. By the way, necessary condition the construction of the Opera was that not a cent from the state treasury would be spent on it. So, a national lottery was announced (before that, Utzon, in order to raise money for the construction, jokingly sold his kisses for $100). In 1959, construction began, and the author of the project was made its leader.

Time passed. The work dragged on. The calculations were wrong. The first version of the foundation had to be blown up. The design of the vaults turned out to be unstable and difficult to implement. Utzon suffered. Once, in 1961, when he, already almost desperate, for the umpteenth time folded convex triangular pieces on the table, from which it was supposed to make domes, it dawned on him: each shell should be, as it were, part of an imaginary sphere, then the roof will become stable and harmonious! “It’s like the skin of an orange!”, he exclaimed, “If you cut the orange peel into sectors, and put these slices in pairs, you get sail shells!” The project has taken on new life.

But time was lost, construction devoured money. Prime Minister Cahill, the admirer of the Opera who laid its foundation stone, has died. The ruling party has changed in the country. The architect began to persecute. In 1965, Utzon was forced to resign and leave Australia forever. He was replaced large group local builders, who by no means grabbed the stars from heaven. The opera was completed long and painfully. And if the outside of the building still remained the way the talented and strong Dane imagined it, then the interior design of the Sydney Opera House turned out to be rather dull and stereotyped.

Finally, in 1973, the grand opening of the Opera House took place, which took 14 years to build and cost $102 million. The theater was opened by Queen Elizabeth II of England.

Utzon was very offended, and even having received the Pritzker Prize for his wonderful brainchild in 2003, he never came to see it. In 2008 he died.

Beauty is eternal!

And the architectural miracle built by Utzon lives on! It is called an excellent example of "frozen music" - in the words of the great Goethe. White vaults resemble magic shells, flying sails, fantastic hangars for flying ships...

The amazing roof is lined with special tiled tiles, which are slightly rough to the touch, like snakeskin (the tiles can be touched).

The joints are so well fitted that the surface of the vaults looks absolutely flat, and fantastic laser shows can be created on it.

The building has two main halls: the Opera Theatre, designed for 1500 seats and the Concert Hall, accommodating 2500 people.

In addition to them, the Sydney Opera House has two more stages, numerous restaurants and entertainment venues. Free concerts and performances are constantly held on the square in front of the theater. Here you can hear national music performed by the natives.

The Sydney Opera is one of the beautiful features, without which it is impossible to imagine the face of the modern world.

The Sydney Opera House is the main hallmark of Australia. Opened by the English Queen Elizabeth II in 1973, the Sydney Opera House is becoming one of the most important attractions in Australia, the refusal to visit which would be an unforgivable mistake. Until 1958, on the site where the opera house now stands, there was a tram depot, and even before the depot, a fort.

The theater took 14 years to build and cost Australia about $102 million. It was originally planned to complete the project in 4 years, but due to difficulties with inner work on finishing was significantly delayed the moment of opening. Theater for normal operation need so much electrical energy, how much would be enough for a city with a population of 25 thousand people. For the construction of this unique complex, piles were driven into the ocean floor of Sydney Harbor to a depth of 25 meters. The roof covering consists of 1.056.006 white tiles and matt cream tiles.

The Sydney Opera House has very recognizable shapes resembling giant sails. But if many people recognize the theater right away, seeing it from the outside in a photo or on television, then not everyone will be able to answer with confidence what kind of building it is, considering its decoration from the inside. To know all the beauties of the theater will allow an excursion that departs through its depths at 7 o'clock in the morning, that is, at a time when the Sydney Opera House is still dozing and its walls are not disturbed by sonorous and loud performances.

This tour takes place only once a day. A huge variety of different performers from all over the world perform in the theater, among them a tradition was born to kiss the wall before the performance, but only the most worthy and great among them are awarded such an honor. For example, on the wall of kisses you can find the imprinted lips of Janet Jackson. But still, the tour can only be an introductory stage in the world of the Sydney Opera House. To get the most out of your experience and positive emotions, you need to attend at least 1 performance.

Another impressive venue for performances in Sydney is Australia Stadium, which has a capacity of 83.5 thousand people.

Information for visitors:

Address: Bennelong Point, Sydney NSW 2000.

How to get there: The opera house is located in Sydney Harbor at Bennelong Point. It will be easy for you to get here from anywhere in Sydney, the intersection of sea and land transport routes is nearby.

Working hours:

Daily (except Sunday) from 9:00 to late in the evening;

Sunday: from 10:00 to late in the evening (depending on the event).

Prices: depending on the event.

Sydney Opera House (Sydney, Australia) - repertoire, ticket prices, address, phone numbers, official website.

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Cruise ship passengers on the approach to the Sydney Harbor Bridge see huge sails billowing to the left side of the board. Or is it the wings of a giant shell? Or maybe the skeleton of a prehistoric whale washed ashore? Neither one nor the other, nor the third - in front of them is the building of the Opera House, the symbol of Australia's largest city. Sun glare reflected from the water wanders along the roof, coloring it different colors, hundreds of tourists on the embankment admire the views of the bay, ships and yachts passing nearby.

A bit of history

In 1955 the government of New South Wales announced international competition on best project opera house for their capital. Among the 233 Constructivist concrete boxes, the complex system of curved surfaces, drawn by the Dane Jorn Watson, stood out sharply. The new architectural style would later be called Structuralism or Structural Expressionism. The author received the Pritzker Prize for his project, an analogue of the Nobel Prize for architects, and the building is included in the List world heritage UNESCO during the lifetime of the author.

Watson did not see his creation complete. The reason, as always, is money. Preliminary estimate turned out to be 15 times lower, the architect was not allowed to finish the construction and was not even paid the full fee. He managed to build only an unusual roof, and other people were engaged in finishing the facade and interior. Later, on the eve of the Olympics, the Australians offered Watson any money for him to return and complete what he started. But he proudly refused.

Theater architecture and interior

The huge building is surrounded by water on three sides and stands on deeply driven piles. 2 million matte ceramic tiles cover the concrete roof as high as a 22-story building. The changing angle of the sun's rays paints it in different colors. Absolutely fantastic evening illumination turns the building into a shining gem. The roof surface often serves as a screen for demonstrating video art and color and music compositions.

One of the two largest "shells" hides the Concert Hall for 2679 spectators with a magnificent organ of 10 thousand pipes. Under the other is the Opera Hall with 1547 seats. Its stage is adorned with a tapestry curtain woven in Aubuisson, it is called the "Curtain of the Sun".

The sound under the magnificent roof was monstrously distorted. Acousticians had to build insulating ceilings over the halls and shape the interior with these features in mind.

The third hall with a capacity of 544 people is reserved for the Drama Theater. Its stage is hidden behind the "Curtain of the Moon", also from the French masters. 4th is for lectures and film demonstrations. In the 5th avant-garde theater troupes perform experimental performances. In the smallest sink, a little to the side, there is a Bennelong restaurant.

Today, the Opera House is the main cultural center not only in Sydney, but throughout Australia. Every day there are performances on its stages, orchestras perform, and art exhibitions are held in the foyer.

Practical Information

Address: Sydney NSW 2000, Bennelong Point. Website (in English).

How to get there: by train, bus or ferry to the Circular Quay transfer hub, then walk along the embankment for 10 minutes (800 m), of. Sidney Trains website (in English)

There are rather conflicting opinions about the most famous building in Australia - the Sydney Opera House. Some consider it a magnificent monument to a frozen melody. Others are embarrassed by the amazingly shaped roof of this structure: to some it resembles huge shells, to some it resembles the sails of the Galleon inflated by the wind, someone associates them with ears listening to the singing of angels, and there is also an opinion that the Sydney theater is very similar to stranded white whale.

In a word, there are as many opinions as there are people, but no one doubts the fact that the Sydney Opera House is a man-made symbol of Australia.

This amazing building is located in Sydney, the most major city Australia, in the harbor of Bennelong Point (on the map it can be found at the following coordinates: 33° 51′ 24.51″ S, 151° 12′ 54.95″ E).

The Sydney Opera House gained world fame primarily due to its roof, made in the form of sails (shells) arranged one after another. different sizes which make it unlike any other theater in the world. The facade of the opera turned out to be so interesting, unusual, and therefore recognizable, which is considered one of the most outstanding buildings. modern architecture, which has been included in the UNESCO World Heritage List for several years now.

The creator of this unique building, Jorn Watson, is the only person in the world whose work this organization recognized during his lifetime (he died a year after this event, in 2008).

Description

The opera house in Australia is primarily unusual in that, unlike other structures of this type, made in classical style, is a vivid example of expressionism, demonstrating A New Look to architecture. The Sydney Opera House is surrounded by water on three sides and is built on stilts.

The area of ​​the theater is huge and amounts to 22 thousand m2: its length is 185 m, width is 120 m, and in the building itself there is a huge number of premises, including several theater halls, many small studios and theater platforms, as well as restaurants, bars and shops , where anyone can buy a souvenir about visiting the theater as a keepsake.

The main rooms are four halls:

  • The Concert Hall is the largest room in the theatre, capable of accommodating 2679 spectators. It is here that the world's largest organ is installed: it consists of 10 thousand pipes;
  • Opera House - 1507 spectators fit in this hall, and on its stage you can see not only opera, but also ballet;
  • Drama theater - designed for 544 people;
  • Small Drama Stage - designed for 398 people and is considered the most comfortable room in the opera.

sail roof

The most remarkable part of the building, which has made the Sydney Opera House one of the most interesting theaters in the world, is its roof, made in the form of shells or sails arranged one behind the other. The roof, which is 67 meters high and 150 meters in diameter, consists of more than 2,000 sections and weighs about 30 tons.

The structure is fixed with metal cables, total length which is 350 km. The two main sinks are above the two largest halls of the opera. Other sails are located above the smaller rooms, and one of the restaurants is located under the smallest one.

The tops of the washbasins are mechanically covered with polished white and cream matt tiles, resulting in a completely smooth surface, an effect that would hardly be achieved by laying it by hand. An interesting fact: despite the fact that from a distance it may seem that the roof is painted in White color, depending on the lighting, it constantly changes its shade.


Such a roof structure looks very beautiful and original, but during construction, due to the uneven height of the roof, there were problems with acoustics inside the building, and in order to solve the drawback, a sound-reflecting ceiling had to be made separately. For this, special gutters were made that can simultaneously perform a practical and aesthetic function: to reflect sound and draw attention to the arches located above the front of the stage (the length of the largest gutter is about 42 meters).

Idea author

Interesting fact: to build an opera house in Sydney was the idea of ​​the British Sir Eugene Goossens, who arrived in Australia as a conductor to record a concert on the radio. One can only imagine his surprise when he discovered that there was no opera house in Sydney.

The city also lacked facilities designed for a large audience in which Sydney people could come to listen to music.

Therefore, the decision to do everything in order to build a theater in which the audience will have the opportunity to get acquainted with both classical and the latest musical works was taken by him immediately. He immediately began looking for a suitable place for construction - it turned out to be the rocky promontory of Bennelong Point, near which the embankment was located, which is a key node, since locals from ferries to trains or buses.

Having found a suitable place (there was a tram depot at that time, which was later demolished), Goossens conducted an appropriate campaign and, infecting many with his idea influential people Sydney, got the government to allow the construction of the Opera House. The authorities immediately announced an international competition for the best project. And then things stalled: Goossens had enemies. After one of the international trips, customs officers found the items of the "black mass", fined him, fired him from his job - and he was forced to leave Australia, despite all the assurances that the things did not belong to him.

Contest

More than two hundred works from all over the world were sent to the competition. one more important point was that Goossens not only managed to select a qualified commission, but also gave a description of the competitive project.

The project was supposed to provide for two halls - one for larger, the second - for small productions. The building must have had rooms where rehearsals could be held, props stored, and a place for restaurants.

The task was complicated by the fact that the area on which it was planned to erect the structure had a rather limited size, since it was surrounded by water on three sides. Therefore, most of the projects were rejected for one simple reason: they looked too cumbersome, and the facade of the building was depressing.


And only one work attracted the attention of the jury, forcing them to return to the project over and over again: in the sketch, the theaters were placed close to each other, the problem of bulkiness was removed by focusing on the white roof in the form of sails, and the author suggested storing the scenery and theatrical props in special recesses, thus solving the backstage problem.

The author of the work turned out to be the Dane Jorn Watson (this architect had many similar original projects, but this one turned out to be one of the few that was implemented). Despite the fact that the project presented by him was a sketch, the cost of the work was estimated at 7 million Australians. dollars, which was a reasonable price. The money to start construction was collected through a lottery.

Construction works

While the project was approved, it was obvious that more work should be done on it (some issues have not been resolved to this day). The main problem was how to make a non-standard roof, especially since there is no similar experience in the world. this moment didn't exist.

Watson solved this issue by shaping each sink into a triangle, assembling it from smaller, curved triangles that were mechanically tiled during fabrication. After that, the sails were installed on concrete ribs (frame ribs) arranged in a circle - this made it possible for the roof to get a complete and harmonious look.

This form gave rise to problems with the acoustics of the hall, which the architect managed to solve later, but it entailed considerable financial expenses (for example, since the new vault turned out to be much heavier than the previous one, it was necessary to blow up the already made foundation and start building a stronger and more durable one).

Instead of the estimated 7 million austral. USD construction cost 102 million. Construction proceeded at a very slow pace, which could not but attract the attention of local deputies and opponents of the architect.

And after the Labor Party, which supported the construction, lost the support of the population and the opposition came to power, the money received from the lottery was first frozen (fortunately, there was a pretext), and then they were completely used to build roads and hospitals, forcing Watson in 1966 quit your job and leave Sydney for good.

After that, Hall was appointed the chief architect, who, although he managed to complete the construction in 1973, but according to many experts, the work he carried out significantly spoiled the appearance of the building, and the interior turned out to be unremarkable (an interesting fact, during the preparations for the Olympics in Australia in 2000, the Australians offered Watson to return and finish the opera, agreeing to do whatever he said, but he refused).

And so it happened that the Sydney Opera House, which is one of the most magnificent buildings of our time, which is mentioned along with the Taj Mahal and other wonders of the world, although it looks great on the outside, it is no different inside. True, this did not prevent the building from taking part in the competition for the title of one of the seven wonders of the world and, although not being among the winners, was among the main contenders.

The Sydney Opera House is one of the most famous buildings of the 20th century and by far the most popular. architectural structure Australia in style. It is located in Sydney Harbour, close to the huge Harbor Bridge. The unusual silhouette of the Sydney Opera House resembles a row of sails raised above the surface of the sea. Now smooth lines in architecture are quite common, but it was the Sydney Theater that became one of the first buildings on the planet with such a radical design. His distinguishing feature- a recognizable form, which includes a number of identical "shells" or "shells".

The history of the theater is full of drama. It all started in 1955, when the government of the state, whose capital is Sydney, announced an international architectural competition. From the very beginning, great hopes were placed on the construction - it was planned that the implementation of an ambitious project to create a new magnificent theater would serve as an impetus for the development of culture on the Australian continent. The competition attracted the attention of many famous architects of the world: the organizers received 233 applications from 28 countries. As a result, the government opted for one of the most striking and non-standard projects, the author of which was the Danish architect Jorn Utzon. An interesting designer and thinker who is in search of new means of expression, Utzon designed the building, as if “coming from a fantasy world,” as the architect himself said.

In 1957, Utzon arrived in Sydney, and two years later, the construction of the theater began. With the start of work, there were many unforeseen difficulties. It turned out that the Utzon project was not sufficiently developed, the design as a whole turned out to be unstable, and the engineers could not find an acceptable solution to implement the bold idea.

Another failure is an error in the construction of the foundation. As a result, it was decided to destroy the original version and start all over again. Meanwhile, the architect attached paramount importance to the foundation: in his project there were no walls as such, the roof vaults rested immediately on the plane of the foundation.

Initially, Utzon believed that his idea could be realized quite simply: make shells from reinforcing mesh, and then cover them with tiles on top. But calculations showed that such a method would not work for a giant roof. The engineers tried different forms- parabolic, ellipsoidal, but all to no avail. Time passed, money melted, customer dissatisfaction grew. Utzon, in despair, drew dozens again and again various options. Finally, one fine day, it dawned on him: his gaze accidentally stopped on the peels of an orange in the form of familiar triangular segments. It was the very shape that the designers had been looking for for so long! Roof vaults, which are parts of a sphere of constant curvature, have the necessary strength and stability.

After Utzon found a solution to the problem with the roof vaults, construction resumed, but the financial costs turned out to be more significant than originally planned. According to preliminary estimates, the construction of the building took 4 years. But it was built for a long 14 years. The construction budget was exceeded by more than 14 times. Customer dissatisfaction has grown so much that in certain moment they suspended Utzon from work. brilliant architect left for Denmark, never to return to Sydney. He never saw his creation, despite the fact that over time everything fell into place, and his talent and contribution to the construction of the theater were recognized not only in Australia, but throughout the world. The interior design of the Sydney Theater is by other architects, so between appearance the difference between the building and its interior decoration is felt.

As a result, the segments of the roof, as if crashing into each other, were made of precast and monolithic reinforced concrete. The surface of the concrete orange peels» lined huge amount tiles made in Sweden. The tiles are covered with a matte glaze, and this allows the roof of the Sydney Theater today to be used as a reflective screen for video art and the projection of bright images. The roof sashes of the Sydney Opera House were built using special cranes ordered from France - the theater was one of the first buildings in Australia to be erected using cranes. And the highest "shell" of the roof corresponds to the height of a 22-story building.

The Sydney Opera House was officially completed in 1973. The theater was opened by Queen Elizabeth II, the grand opening was accompanied by fireworks and a performance of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony. The first performance performed in the new theater was S. Prokofiev's opera "War and Peace".

Today the Sydney Opera House is Australia's largest cultural center. More than 3,000 events are held here every year, and the annual audience is 2 million spectators. The theater program includes an opera called "The Eighth Miracle", which tells about difficult history building construction.