Linz’s new opera house
The glamorous opening ceremony is unforgotten and now the new Linz Opera at the central park Linz – Europe’ latest opera hall, starts off into the daily operation of the season. It offers one highlight after the other: Based on a text by Peter Handke, Philip Glass has composed the opera "Spuren der Verirrten" (Traces of the Lost) especially for the grand opening. The staging of Richard Strauss' "Der Rosenkavalier" (The Knight of the Rose) has been formatted to fit the new stage. The musical „The witches of Eastwick“ will be performed in Austria for the first time. And Richard Wagner’s "Der Ring des Nibelungen" (The Ring of the Nibelung) will be performed in autumn of 2013.
Photo: Landestheater/Sigrid Rauchendobler: Chairs in Linz’s new Opera House
Photo: Landestheater/Sigrid Rauchendobler: Linz Opera, internal view
Photo: Landestheater/Sigrid Rauchendobler: Linz Opera, external view
Photo: Tourismusverband Linz: Couple in front of Linz’s new Opera House
Photo: beyer.co.at: Rendering of the Opera House, profileEven the architecture is futuristic. With the opera house and theatre hall on the green Volksgarten, the architecture firm of Terry Pawson in London is creating a connection between the neighbourhood of Bahnhofsviertel and the city centre. The theatre is a five-storey building with two floors of cellars and the stage tower comprises three further levels. The façade surrounds the building like a huge curtain and is wrapped around it. The 1.5-metre-wide areas that are created are either decorated or fully glassed for illumination, depending on what is needed. In this way, the window openings are easily integrated without disrupting the uniform character of the external cover.
Pawson also continues with the curtain metaphor on the inside. The Linz Opera will be the first theatre in Austria with a multi-functional turning stage, which at 32 metres is the centre of the stage.
