Vienna State Opera
The opera house was the first major building on the Vienna Ringstrasse commissioned by the Viennese "city expansion fund". Work commenced on the house in 1861 and was completed in 1869, following plans drawn up by architects August Sicard von Sicardsburg and Eduard van der Nüll. It was built in the Neo-Renaissance style by the renowned Czech architect and contractor Josef Hlávka.
Buxton Opera House
In 2011, "FT Magazine" featured an article on opera house design. In the section called "My favourite experiences", the writer praised the European opera houses "designed by the Viennese architectural firm of Fellner and Helmer (the Zurich Opera House is [an] example) ... [which] represent a near-ideal marriage of size, acoustic and decorative beauty. Their British equivalents are those designed by Frank Matcham – best of all the Buxton Opera House."