The Sydney Opera House in Australia, Sydney Opera House, is one of the main attractions of the big city Australia, and the entire continent. Seeing it only once, you will never confuse this theater with any other building in the world. The architecture of the building was duly appreciated by contemporaries, the theater has been recognized since its opening calling card Sydney and Australia.
The Opera House is located in Sydney Harbour, at Bennelong Point. Before its creation, a tram depot was located on this site, even earlier - a fort.
The history of the theater began back in 1955, when the government gave permission to build on the cape on one condition - the project would not be funded by the state. Despite the technical difficulties of the project - the cape is surrounded by water on three sides, and two opera houses were to be located on a site of only 350 x 250 feet - in international competition projects involved 223 works. And won it brilliant project Dane from Elsinore Jorn Utson, his idea to build two theaters close to each other without walls, only with a row of fan-shaped white roofs, captivated the jury of the competition.
Opera House in Sydney.
The construction of the opera lasted for a long 14 years, and cost 102 million Australian dollars.
On October 20, 1973, the theater was inaugurated by Queen Elizabeth II of England. And the first performance under its arches was "War and Peace" by Sergei Prokofiev. The theater hosts more than 3,000 performances annually, with more than 2 million Australians and visitors to their audiences.
And in 2003, Jorn Utson was awarded the Pritzker Prize for the project.
Video about Sydney Opera theatre from National Geographic:
Today, the Sydney Opera House plays the role cultural center continent. Its premises house the Australian Opera, the Symphony Orchestra, the Australian Ballet, the Theater Company and the Dance Company. Opera hall, concert hall, chamber hall and hall drama theater. Several bars, restaurants, and a hall for ceremonial receptions. The world's largest mechanical organ, the largest in the world theater curtain- all this is located under the wonderful domes of the Sydney Opera House.
The architecture of this wonder of the world is striking in its grandeur and scope. With a height of about 185 meters and a maximum width of 120, the building weighs 161,000 tons and rests on 580 piles immersed in the waters of the harbor to a depth of 25 meters below sea level. Its electricity consumption is comparable to that of small town with a population of 25 thousand people.
And the Sydney Opera House deserves to be seen with your own eyes.
I have already said that at first sight the Sydney Opera House disappointed me. So observation deck in the Botanical Garden it seemed small, unimpressive, of some incomprehensible color.
The opinion changed when we went on a tour inside and I got to know her better. Interest in the internal has been transformed into an interest in the external. After all, this often happens with new acquaintances - at first glance you may not like a person, but, having got to know him better, your opinion changes.
So how did Opera begin? In the late 1940s, the director of the New South Wales Conservatory, Eugene Goossens, began to talk about the need for a new building for opera productions, as the previously used Sydney Town Hall building seemed too small for future projects. In 1954, he obtained the consent of the Premier of NSW, and on September 13, 1955, the open architectural competition for the construction of the Sydney Opera House. Cape Bennelong Point was chosen as the site, at that time there was a tram depot there.
The requirements for the project included the construction of two buildings: an opera house and a concert hall. More than 200 applications were submitted for the competition. In 1957, the name of the winner was announced, it was a 38-year-old not very famous Danish architect - Jorn Utson. According to legend, his project did not pass the terms of the competition and was considered too ambitious, so it quickly ended up in the basket, from where it was saved. famous architect Eero Saarinen, and returned to the competition pool. This is what the original sketch looked like:
In 1958, the tram depot was demolished, and in 1959 the construction of the theater began. By that time, Utson still did not have the final drawings of the building and the engineering design, but the government was in a hurry to start, so the foundation and base began to be built without knowing further details. This moment was absolutely amazing to me and seemed rather reckless on the part of the then local government.
The foundation was completed in 1963.
From 1957 to 1961, the engineering team tried to come up with a solution for how to bring to life Utson's sketch of his opera's shell roofs. They fingered different forms parabolas for these shells, but technically at that moment all this was impossible.
And only in 1961 (that is, 4 years after the end of the competition and 2 years after the start of construction!) A solution was found - roof shells were made as parts of a sphere, the so-called. spheres of Utson.
Thanks to the solution found, it was possible to simplify the process of protracted construction. The building was planned to be completed in 1965, but as always, plans diverged from reality. 1966 construction still in progress full swing although it was nearing completion. But this is only the outer part.
There was still work to be done on interior decoration. The estimate kept growing, a new government came, which was not satisfied with the work of Utson, and this led to the resignation of the architect in 1966. So work with internal architecture and decoration was already under the direction of another architect, Utson's plans were largely changed and revised. Who knows how the Sydney Opera House would sound today if Utson himself completed it.
Construction was completed in 1973, i.е. 10 years later than originally planned and with a 14-fold increase in the estimate. On October 20, 1973, the building was inaugurated by Elizabeth II.
Utson was not at the opening, and did not see the completed theater. It wasn't until the late 1990s that the Sydney Opera Trust approached the architect with a proposal to redevelop some of the premises. So in 2004, the "Utson Room" was opened - one of the interior rooms, remade according to new sketches of Utson.
It is assumed that in the coming years the theater may be closed for a complete reconstruction to remake the interior and halls, to improve acoustics.
Now the theater has two large halls - Concert hall(for 2679 people) and the Joan Sutherland Theater (for 1507 people), named after the Australian opera diva; three theater halls(for 544, 400 and 398 people); and two rooms that can be used for various purposes and for different type productions. The building also has a recording room, bars and restaurants.
This is what the Concert Hall looks like inside. They say that Luciano Pavarotti refused to perform there, because. this purple of the carpet matches the color of the upholstery of the coffins in Italy.
Entrails. I don't know why, but I like this simplicity and openness of concrete structures.
Their combination with soft wood and cold metal.
After the tour of the Opera, it became interesting for me to observe and examine the theater not only inside, but also outside.
The domes of the roof remind me not only of waves and shells, but also of the helmets of the Spanish conquistadors.
I will return to the Opera after the meditation retreat to watch "Orpheus in Hell" by J. Offenbach. A light operetta, and even with a modern language libretto - not my cup of tea.
Unfortunately, in addition to the production itself, the acoustics of the theater became a disappointment. Very flat and of course loses much to European opera houses. For some reason, in many new halls there are problems with acoustics. I can't figure out why. It seems that there are many tools for calculations, but you still come to new hall and hear a flat sound.
But the night scenery of Sydney, the Opera House and the waterfront are simply magnificent.
Sydney Opera House - Outstanding architectural structure 20th century It was nominated for the title of a new wonder of the world, and was among the finalists. Listed by UNESCO, this building is a popular tourist symbol of Australia.
The Sydney Opera House is located in the local harbor at Bennelong Point. The building was built on 580 concrete piles driven into the bottom. Its length is 183 m, width - 118, and the occupied area - more than 21.5 thousand m 2. The maximum height of the building is 67 m.
Interesting Facts about the Sydney Opera House are not only about the history of construction and architectural implementation (they will be discussed below). No other theater has a work about him in its repertoire. The opera The Eighth Wonder is the only precedent.
History of the Sydney Opera House
Sydney until the middle of the 20th century. did not have an opera house at all. Guest conductor of the local symphony orchestra Eugene Goossens considered this situation unacceptable. The Sydney authorities agreed with him, but did not have the funds for construction. In 1954 they launched a fundraiser that lasted two decades. During this period, about 10,000,000 AUD were collected. The initially declared cost of the construction in 7000000 AUD eventually turned into actually spent 102000000 AUD.
Under the terms of the announced competition, the limited area of Cape Bennelong was assigned as the place for the construction of the theater. The main hall for 3,000 seats of the designed building was reserved for opera and ballet. The Small Hall for 1200 spectators was planned for chamber theatrical and musical productions. Among 233 contestants, the young Danish architect Jorn Utson won. According to his project, the building outwardly resembled a multi-sail ship on the water surface surrounding the cape.
The work that began in 1959 dragged on for 14 years instead of the planned four, extending the date of construction until 1973. The delay had both objective and subjective reasons. The first includes the demand of the authorities to add two additional halls. And the sail-like roof shells originally designed by Jorn Utson had acoustical shortcomings. It took the architect several years to find an alternative technical solution. The new vault turned out to be too heavy for the foundation made, and a new one had to be made.
Additional spending and delays in construction strained Utson's relationship with the local authorities, and he left Sydney. In 1966, construction was continued by local architects. According to many experts, this had a negative impact on the interior of the building. The theater inside is significantly inferior to the stunning facade.
The Sydney new building actually opened on September 28, 1973 with Sergei Prokofiev's opera War and Peace. The official ceremony took place on October 20 with the participation of the British monarch Elizabeth II, who is the formal head of Australia.
The architect of the Sydney Opera House was not present at the opening, and was not even mentioned. Neither is his name on the bronze plaque of the authors at the entrance. True, in the same year, the local Institute of Architects awarded Jorn Utson with a gold medal. And in 2003, he received the Pritzker Prize for his project - the highest award architects.
In 1999, Jörn Utsson nevertheless designed the reconstruction of the Reception Hall, later renamed in his honor. The work was supervised by Jorn's son architect Jan Utson. And Yorn himself did not return to Sydney after 1966. He died in 2008 without ever seeing his famous creation. The floodlights illuminating the Sydney Opera House were turned off for an hour in memory of the great architect.
Sydney Opera House its architect and architect
Opera houses are usually built in classical style. In contrast, the Sydney Opera House - bright pattern architectural style expressionism. The unique roof is realized in the form of sails of different sizes. Surrounded by three parties From a distance, the building looks like a large multi-sail ship moored in Sydney Harbor. That's how I saw future theater its architect. He said that he wanted to take the audience away from the usual routine into a fantasy world where actors and musicians live.
The area allocated for construction was limited. The projects rejected by the jury of the competition had a common drawback - cumbersomeness. Jörn Utson solved this problem by transferring attention to the architectural dominant of the building - the roof. Its total diameter is 150 m. The roof frame consists of 2 thousand concrete sections and weighs 30 tons. The two largest sails crown both main halls, originally conceived. Under the smallest sail is the Bennelong restaurant. The whole structure is fastened with metal cables, with a total length of 350 km.
The uneven roof height initially caused acoustic problems. They were filmed using a sound-reflecting ceiling with special gutters. The latter, except practical function, performed also aesthetic, emphasizing the arches of the stage.
On top, the sail roofs are covered with white polished and cream matte azulejo tiles (Portuguese tiles). It was specially made for the theatre. Matte tiles predominate along the edges, while shiny tiles dominate in the center, which made it possible to create an iridescent effect. For cladding with total area 1.62 hectares required more than a million pieces of tiles. The mechanical method of laying made it possible to achieve perfect evenness, unattainable with manual cladding.
Although from a distance the sails of the roof appear white, they change their shade depending on the lighting. As the architect said, the sun and clouds will make the roof alive, you will never get tired of looking at it. He turned out to be right.
Sydney Opera House inside
The functional purpose of the main halls has changed. The main hall, originally planned for opera and ballet performances, was decided to be converted into a concert hall. Actually, the second largest hall became the opera house. Now the complex has 6 main halls.
- Concert Hall (Concert) for 2679 spectators. It has one of the world's largest organs with 10,000 pipes. The 17*11 m stage can be expanded with 85 front seats.
- Opera Theater(Opera) accommodates 1547 spectators. Its tapestry curtain, called "Solar" - the largest on the planet.
- Drama Theater (Dramatic) for 544 spectators is used for theatrical and dance performances. Its dark tapestry curtain is called "Lunar".
- The Playhouse Hall, seating 398, hosts chamber theatrical performances, lectures and film screenings. The hall stage can be expanded in two stages by sacrificing 46 seats.
- Opened in 1999, the “Studio” hall can gather 364 lovers of avant-garde plays, contemporary music or corporates.
- The small hall of Jorn Utson is decorated with a woolen tapestry in bright colors, woven according to his sketch.
The theater complex includes about a thousand different rooms. In addition to the halls, the building has rehearsal rooms, theater platforms, sound recording studio, shops, cafes, restaurants and other numerous facilities. It is not difficult for a person who does not know the plan of the theater to get lost in it.
There is an anecdotal case with a novice courier who delivered a package. He got confused in the premises and ended up on stage during the performance. Fortunately, one of the actors was not taken aback and said: “Finally, the package was delivered!”. The audience considered his remark part of the plot.
Another comical incident occurred during the performance of Mussorgsky's opera Boris Godunov. Her scenery included real chickens. One of them flew off the stage onto the musician's head. After that, a grid was installed over the orchestra pit.
Theater tickets
At the Sydney Opera House at Bennelong point, Sydney NSW 2000, around three thousand cultural events which millions of viewers become participants. You can get acquainted with the repertoire and order tickets on the official website.
300 thousand tourists annually visit the theater as part of organized excursions. They are held from 9:00 to 17:00 every day, except for Christmas and Good Friday, and last about an hour.
The cost of a regular tour is 35 AUD. Evening excursions are also practiced, combined with a performance, as well as dinner in a restaurant or cafe. For example, a tour and Mozart's opera "The Magic Flute" will be well complemented by dinner at the Mozart bistro.
In this lesson we will draw the building of the Sydney Opera House in Adobe Illustrator. The lesson is designed for users who are familiar with the program and its functions. After we draw the building and the background, we export the file to Adobe Photoshop, where we turn the work into an animated GIF.
Result
1. Draw a building
Step 1
Let's start by creating a new document in Adobe Illustrator with the following settings:
Step 2
To start, let's create horizontal line 2px thick in the middle of our artboard. Do this with the Line Segment tool.
Then draw a rectangle (340x6px), with a 2 px thick stroke. This will be the base of the opera.
Step 3
Now let's draw the walls of the building. Draw some rectangles and then with the Pen Tool (P) add reference points, and with the Direct Selection Tool (A), drag the points up.
Then add windows and doors using the Rectangle Tool (M).
Step 4
Now let's draw the domes with the Pen Tool. Draw the first dome white color with a 2 stroke.
Now let's create a shadow for the dome. To do this, duplicate the dome itself (Ctrl + C & Ctrl + F), deselect the stroke for the top copy. Draw a shadow, then place a copy of the dome without a stroke on top of the shadow, select both objects, right click and select Make Clipping Mask. Group together all the elements of the dome, and repeat the same procedure with the rest of the domes.
Step 5
Now let's draw the windows in the domes.
To begin with, we will designate the intersections with the Line Segment tool / Line segment, then with the Shape Builder tool / Shape Creation (Shift + M) we will create windows, after which we will erase the extra elements.
Step 6
Now let's create the raised terraces. Draw the terraces with the Pen Tool (P) and send them to back.
We will also create highlights on the windows. To do this, draw white rectangles, and with the help of clipping masks (as we did above), we will limit the presence of glare only on the windows.
Our building is ready!
Step 7
Now let's deal with the sea and the clouds.
To begin with, let's draw rectangles of different widths, but the same height - in 6px. This will be our water. Unite the rectangles in the Pathfinder/Pathfinder palette, and round the corners for the entire object. With the Line Segment Tool, draw short strokes on the water, 2px thick. And finally create a background and draw clouds from two circles of different sizes. Unite the circles, cut the bottom in a straight line.
Now let's move on to Photoshop to animate the clouds!
Step 8
Before moving on to another graphics editor, let's prepare our file. To do this, in the palette Layer / Layers, select the layer in which you worked, click on the menu arrow, and select “Release to Layers (Sequence) / (Convert to Layers (Sequentially))”. Then select File>Export>Export As… from the menu/File>Export>Export As... and select the Photoshop format (.psd) with the options below.
2. How to Create an Animated GIF in Photoshop
Step 1
First, let's open our file. Select Create Video Time from the Timeline palette.
Step 2
We will work with three frames. Let's start by animating layers 4,6 and 7. Create frames with the initial arrangement of elements and move the clouds to the right in the third frame. We do the same with layers 2,3 and 5, only we move the clouds to the left.
Step 3
Now we only need to export the file to GIF format. To do this, select File>Export>Save for Web from the menu. And specify the parameters as in the picture below.
Result
Translation - Desk
The visiting card of the entire continent of Australia is not a kangaroo at all, but the Sydney Opera House. It is impossible to confuse this building with anything else. It is unusual, original and simply unforgettable.
The project of the theater was created in such a way that the building fits perfectly into the surrounding landscape. Spread around the theater sea spaces, which is why Jorn Utzon, a Danish architect, came up with the idea of “giving” the Sydney Opera House a roof in the form of sails or shells. This unusual building is located in a quiet harbor, on the very shore of the bay. And nearby you can see another of the world's attractions - the Harbor Bridge, a magnificent bridge.
The theater project was so difficult to implement that it took 14 years to build it, and the pleasure itself was far from cheap (about 102 million US dollars). And in 1973, even Elizabeth II herself, the famous Queen of England, came to the opening of the Sydney Opera House. The building of the luxurious theater is included in the UNESCO list and is under its protection. It is almost impossible to describe this structure in numbers. The length of the building alone is 185 meters. But the total weight of the structure is 161,000 tons.
