Opéra Garnier; An Emblematic Parisian Location
Categories : Exhibitions and Museums, published on : 9/11/14
The Opéra Garnier, or Palais Garnier, is one of the defining landmarks of Paris. This showcase for world class opera and ballet performances and classical music concerts offers a Beaux Arts period opulence that is emblematic of its period; the Second French Empire of Napoleon III. The new 2014-2015 season begins and promises the customary high standard of performances.
The Story Of How The Opéra Garnier Came To Be
Due in part to being the setting for the 1910 Gaston Leroux novel, The Phantom Of The Opera, the Opéra Garnier may well be the world’s most famous opera house. An 1860 competition to select an architect for a long anticipated new opera house resulted in Charles Garnier being awarded the commission. The foundations were laid in 1861 and the building work continued for a further fourteen years through various delays including the Siege of Paris during the Franco-Prussian War.
Originally known as the Salle des Capucines, the neo-Baroque style Opéra Garnier was at last inaugurated in 1875. The magnificence of the building received universal acclaim, with its huge marble grand staircase, impressive foyer and superb auditorium hung with a six tonne chandelier.
The Opéra Garnier was the primary home of the Paris Opera until the opening of the Opera Bastille in 1989, and still welcomes around 480,000 visitors each year. A highlight of the new season will be performances of choreography by Harald Lander and William Forsythe. An evening spent amidst the splendour of this historical monument will surely prove to be one of the outstanding memories of your visit to the capital.
Opéra de Paris Tél. 0033 (0)1 40 01 19 70
Palais Garnier, 8 Rue Scribe – Paris 9e
Metro : Opéra, lines 3, 7, 8 - Chaussée d’Antin Lafayette, lines 7, 9
RER A : Auber
