How much money did the Sydney Opera House cost to build?
Planning fallacy
The Sydney Opera House was expected to be completed in 1963. A scaled-down version opened in 1973, a decade later. The original cost was estimated at $7 million, but its delayed completion led to a cost of $102 million.
Grand Opera House (Seattle)
Construction began March 24, 1923 on a parking garage described at the time as "the first of its kind in the Northwest" with "[p]atented ramps".
At that time it was described as $30,000 "five-story and basement" project with a capacity of 300 cars; a day before it opened on August 20, it was described as a seven-story building (6 floors and a basement) with a capacity of 350 cars, and having cost twice the original estimate. It was further described as having "heavy mill-type construction" with concrete floors, using the patented d'Humy Motoramp. The garage also included a full-service auto servicing shop. The resulting Cherry Street Garage became the third garage in the portfolio of the Griggs Garage Company, making it the largest such company in Seattle at that time.
Ordway Center for the Performing Arts
In 1980, Saint Paul resident Sally Ordway Irvine (3M heiress and arts patron) dreamed of a European-style concert hall offering “everything from opera to the Russian circus.” Sally contributed $7.5 million—a sum matched by other members of the Ordway family—toward the cost of the facility. Fifteen Twin Cities corporations and foundations were the principal funders of the $46 million complex, then the most expensive privately funded arts facility ever built in the state. The internationally known architect (and Saint Paul native) Benjamin Thompson, whose other projects included the Faneuil Hall renovation in Boston and South Street Seaport in New York, was selected to design a building that would project “a visible contemporary image” but would also fit harmoniously on a site facing Rice Park, a block-square park framed by historic buildings. As designed by Thompson, Ordway Center (originally named Ordway Music Theatre) previously contains a Music Theater (1,900 seats). When originally built it included an intimate McKnight Theatre (306 seats); two large rehearsal rooms; and the Marzitelli Foyer, a spacious two-story lobby with a glass curtain-wall through which theater-goers enjoy a sweeping panorama of Rice Park, its surrounding buildings, and in the distance, the Mississippi River. The McKnight Theatre was demolished in 2013 to make room for the new 1,093 seat Concert Hall which opened on February 28, 2015.
Lafayette Square Opera House
The Lafayette Square Opera House as built by John W. Albaugh, on behalf of the Lafayette Square Opera House Company. It was completed in September 1895 at a cost of 250,000 dollars ($ in present day terms). Located on Madison Place NW, just north of Pennsylvania Avenue, the theater faced Lafayette Square and the White House. The site, originally the home of Commodore John Rodgers, was noted for a history of tragic events and believed to be haunted. It was there that Congressman, later Civil War General, Daniel Sickles killed the district attorney for the District of Columbia, Philip Barton Key II, son of Francis Scott Key. Following the Civil War, John Wilkes Booth's co-conspirator, Lewis Powell, attempted to take the life of Secretary of State William H. Seward, who was living there at the time. The property was later purchased by former Secretary of State James G. Blaine, and it was there that he and two of his children, Walker and Alice, died.
Sydney Opera House Trust
The Trust operates as one of the State's premier cultural institutions within the Arts NSW portfolio. It is constituted as a body corporate under the "Sydney Opera House Trust Act 1961". It has 10 members appointed by the Governor of New South Wales on the nomination of the Minister for the Arts. The Trustees must include at least two persons who have knowledge of or experience in the performing arts. A Trustee holds office for three years and is eligible for reappointment for no more than three consecutive terms.
Joseph Wyatt (theatre owner)
Wyatt sold the Royal Victoria Theatre in 1854. He built a new theatre in Sydney, the Prince of Wales Theatre, on Castlereagh Street, at a cost of about £30,000. It had a dress circle, upper boxes and gallery, and was said to seat about 3,000. It opened on 12 March 1855. "It was soon apparent," wrote an obituarist, "that "two" theatres would "not" pay in Sydney... he was at length compelled to take the benefit of the Insolvent Act." He sold the theatre at a heavy loss in 1858.
Opera House, Wellington
Construction work on the building began in 1911, and was originally named "The Grand Opera House" in May 1913 with a plan to open early on Boxing Night that year. The principal architect William Pitt was based in Melbourne, Australia, and much of the work was overseen by Wellington architect Albert Liddy. The opera house finally opened on Easter Saturday of 12 April 1914 to an evening performance by the American Burlesque Company, with a full seating capacity of 2141 in three levels of stalls, dress circle and gallery, including 50 box seats. The original seating upholstery was made and installed by the Wellington company Kirkcaldie & Stains, and the interior features fine plaster moldings and ornate dome. The building was designed with brick masonry outer walls with wooden floors and a timber-framed roof.
Sydney Symphony Orchestra
At the end of World War II, the ABC reached agreement with the Sydney City Council and the New South Wales state government to jointly fund the orchestra. The new 80-member Sydney Symphony Orchestra gave its first concert in January 1946.
Eugene Goossens joined the orchestra as its first chief conductor in 1947. Goossens introduced outdoor concerts and conducted Australian premieres of contemporary music. In 1948, he uttered the prophetic words, "Sydney must have an opera house!". Goossens was knighted in 1955, the year before his term was due to end. His tenure was abruptly cut short in March 1956 under personal circumstances deemed 'scandalous' at the time, and he was forced to return to England in disgrace.
History of New South Wales
In 1973, after a long period of planning and construction, the Sydney Opera House was officially opened. The building was from a design by Jørn Utzon. It became a symbol not only of Sydney, but of the Australian nation and was inscribed by UNESCO in 2007. Sydney has maintained extensive political, economic and cultural influence over Australia as well as international renown in recent decades. The city hosted the 2000 Olympic Games, the 2003 Rugby World Cup and the APEC Leaders conference of 2007. From 1991 to 2007, Sydney-siders governed as Prime Minister of Australia—first Paul Keating (1991–1996) and later John Howard (1996–2007).
Culture of Sydney
Opera Australia, as at 2015 the world's third-busiest opera company, has its headquarters in Sydney and performs a busy program of mainly classical and occasionally contemporary operas at the Opera Theatre of the Sydney Opera House.
Babworth House
The estimated cost of the work was from A£30,00040,000. The house was on a grand scale with high quality finishes and it appears that it was not until 1915 that Samuel Hordern and his family took up residence in their new home, called Babworth House. Its style and location were sure marks of a class of commercial entrepreneurs which had established itself as part of the Sydney social elite.
David Surrey Littlemore
David Littlemore AO was one of Australia's most distinguished architects. Littlemore was one of the first life fellows of the Royal Australian Institute of Architects. He headed the consortium that took over the design and construction of the Sydney Opera House in 1966 when Mr Jørn Utzon resigned his commission from the NSW Government.
Tourism in Sydney
The building was included in the Olympic Torch route in 2000 to the Olympic stadium. It was the backdrop of some events for the Sydney 2000 Olympics, including the triathlon—which began at the Opera House—and the yachting events on Sydney Harbour. The dramatic exteriors have not been matched with technically superior interiors, and the Opera House's reputation as a music venue has suffered as a result.
Southport Winter Gardens
The Opera House was built on Lord Street as an additional attraction to the main winter gardens complex. It opened on 7 September 1891 and was supported by leading dramatic companies in the area. It was designed by Frank Matcham, architect of many theatres in the United Kingdom. The building seated 2,000 people and cost around £20,000 to build. At the time the Opera House theatre was considered nationally to be one of Matcham's finest creations. The venue was a great success and had many well known performers attend including Ellen Terry, Matheson Lang, Sir Henry Irving. In December 1929 a fire raged through the building completely destroying it.
Sydney Opera House
Utzon's ability was never in doubt, despite questions raised by Davis Hughes, who attempted to portray Utzon as an impractical dreamer. Ove Arup actually stated that Utzon was "probably the best of any I have come across in my long experience of working with architects" and: "The Opera House could become the world's foremost contemporary masterpiece if Utzon is given his head."
In October 1965, Utzon gave Hughes a schedule setting out the completion dates of parts of his work for stage III. Utzon was at this time working closely with Ralph Symonds, a manufacturer of plywood based in Sydney and highly regarded by many, despite an Arup engineer warning that Ralph Symonds's "knowledge of the design stresses of plywood, was extremely sketchy" and that the technical advice was "elementary to say the least and completely useless for our purposes." Australian architecture critic Elizabeth Farrelly has referred to Ove Arup's project engineer Michael Lewis as having "other agendas". In any case, Hughes shortly after withheld permission for the construction of plywood prototypes for the interiors, and the relationship between Utzon and the client never recovered. By February 1966, Utzon was owed more than $100,000 in fees. Hughes then withheld funding so that Utzon could not even pay his own staff. The government minutes record that following several threats of resignation, Utzon finally stated to Davis Hughes: "If you don't do it, I resign." Hughes replied: "I accept your resignation. Thank you very much. Goodbye."
Sydney Opera House
In 1993, Constantine Koukias was commissioned by the Sydney Opera House Trust in association with REM Theatre to compose "Icon", a large-scale music theatre piece for the 20th anniversary of the Sydney Opera House
Museum of Sydney
The original house, which was Australia's first Government House, was built in 1788 and later abandoned. The foundations were exposed by archaeologists in 1983. The new museum building on the site was designed by Denton Corker Marshall architects. The museum was built as part of the Governor Phillip Tower development and is managed by the Historic Houses Trust of New South Wales.
Point Piper, New South Wales
John Symond's mansion on Wingadal Place, reportedly cost over 70 million to build (excluding land), easily making it Australia's most expensive, privately owned residential home. In 2007, "Altona", located in Wunulla Road and Australia's second-most expensive house, was listed for more than $50 million. It was sold in 2013 for a price thought to be more than $50 million, which was a Sydney record.
Sydney Opera House
In the late 1990s, the Sydney Opera House Trust resumed communication with Utzon in an attempt to effect a reconciliation and to secure his involvement in future changes to the building. In 1999, he was appointed by the Trust as a design consultant for future work.
In 2004, the first interior space rebuilt to an Utzon design was opened, and renamed "The Utzon Room" in his honour. It contains an original Utzon tapestry (14.00 x 3.70 metres) called "Homage to Carl Philipp Emmanuel Bach". In April 2007, he proposed a major reconstruction of the Opera Theatre, as it was then known. Utzon died on 29 November 2008.
Sydney Opera House
Planning began in the late 1940s, when Eugene Goossens, the Director of the NSW State Conservatorium of Music, lobbied for a suitable venue for large theatrical productions. The normal venue for such productions, the Sydney Town Hall, was not considered large enough. By 1954, Goossens succeeded in gaining the support of NSW Premier Joseph Cahill, who called for designs for a dedicated opera house. It was also Goossens who insisted that Bennelong Point be the site: Cahill had wanted it to be on or near Wynyard Railway Station in the northwest of the CBD.
Sydney Opera House
The shells of the competition entry were originally of undefined geometry, but, early in the design process, the "shells" were perceived as a series of parabolas supported by precast concrete ribs. However, engineers Ove Arup and Partners were unable to find an acceptable solution to constructing them. The formwork for using "in-situ" concrete would have been prohibitively expensive, and, because there was no repetition in any of the roof forms, the construction of precast concrete for each individual section would possibly have been even more expensive.
Oslo Opera House
In 1999, after a long national debate, the Norwegian legislature decided to construct a new opera house in the city. A design competition was held and, of the 350 entries received, the judges chose that of Snøhetta. Construction started in 2003 and was completed in 2007, ahead of schedule and 300 million NOK (~US$52 million) under its budget of 4.4 billion NOK (~US$760 million). The gala opening on 12 April 2008 was attended by His Majesty King Harald, Queen Margrethe II of Denmark and President Tarja Halonen of Finland and other leaders. During the first year of operation, 1.3 million people passed through the building's doors.
Sydney Opera House
An international design competition was launched by Cahill on 13 September 1955 and received 233 entries, representing architects from 32 countries. The criteria specified a large hall seating 3,000 and a small hall for 1,200 people, each to be designed for different uses, including full-scale operas, orchestral and choral concerts, mass meetings, lectures, ballet performances, and other presentations.
Süreyya Opera House
By the beginning of 2006, Kadıköy Municipality under Mayor Selami Öztürk launched a redevelopment project after leasing the building in August 2005 from Darüşşafaka Association for a term of 40 years. The restoration included the frescos at the ceiling and on the walls, and the sculptures on the facade. The construction works lasted almost two years and the cost amounted to around 14 million YTL (approx. $9m).
Michael Baume
Born in Sydney, Baume earned a B.A. from the University of Sydney, and before entering Parliament worked as a company director, journalist, author, music critic, stockbroker (he was a partner in the Sydney firm, Patrick Partners), television panellist and radio commentator. In 1967 his book on the controversies surrounding the creation of the Sydney Opera House, "The Sydney Opera House Affair", was published by Thomas Nelson and Sons.
Adelaide Town Hall
After the official opening in 1866, a campaign began to obtain a pipe organ for the Auditorium. The City's amateur musicians held two concerts which raised ₤120 for the Organ Fund, only to see the money used to settle the outstanding account for the Albert Bells instead. In 1869, the Adelaide Philharmonic Society was formed and the choir staged 25 concerts over the next six years to raise over ₤500 for the Organ Fund. The estimated cost of the organ was ₤1,200 and the Council had promised to contribute ₤600. In 1875 Council ordered an organ from the London manufacturers, William Hill & Son. As a compromise on the cost, the Council decided to have Hill & Son construct the organ so that it could be added to in later years. The total cost came to £2106.16s.9d. The opening concert was held on 2 October 1877 but it wasn't long before a campaign to enlarge the organ by adding solo stops began and this upgrade was completed in 1885. The hydraulic engine was replaced in 1923 by an electric motor but after frequent criticism that it was out of date, clumsy of operation, and needed complete retuning to international standard pitch, the Council eventually voted to replace the original century-old pipe organ in 1989.
Sydney Opera House
Refurbished Western Foyer and Accessibility improvements were commissioned on 17 November 2009, the largest building project completed since Utzon was re-engaged in 1999. Designed by Utzon and his son Jan, the project provided improved ticketing, toilet and cloaking facilities. New escalators and a public lift enabled enhanced access for the disabled and families with prams. The prominent paralympian athlete Louise Sauvage was announced as the building's "accessibility ambassador" to advise on further improvements to aid people with disabilities.
Sydney Academy
Demand for a new building was met in 1864, when the new Education Act provided for the construction of a new school. The Sydney Board selected a site on Pitt Street, where the present telephone office now stands. This building was officially opened on May 1, 1866 and cost $3600. It was used until 1882, at which time larger accommodations for educational work were needed. The second Sydney Academy building was destroyed by fire in 1901.
Sydney Symphony Orchestra
The Sydney Symphony Orchestra (SSO) is an Australian symphony orchestra that was initially formed in 1908. Since its opening in 1973, the Sydney Opera House has been its home concert hall. The orchestra's current chief conductor is David Robertson.
Sydney Opera House
Hall agreed to accept the role on the condition there was no possibility of Utzon returning. Even so, his appointment did not go down well with many of his fellow architects who considered that no one but Utzon should complete the Sydney Opera House. Upon Utzon's dismissal, a rally of protest had marched to Bennelong Point. A petition was also circulated, including in the Government Architects office. Peter Hall was one of the many who had signed the petition that called for Utzon's reinstatement.
Opera Australia
Luciano Pavarotti and Joan Sutherland appeared at the Concert Hall of the Sydney Opera House in 1983, with the Elizabethan Sydney Orchestra conducted by Richard Bonynge (the sister orchestra in Melbourne was known as the Elizabethan Melbourne Orchestra. Now they are known respectively as the Australian Opera and Ballet Orchestra, Sydney and Orchestra Victoria, Melbourne). Another successful concert with Sutherland and Marilyn Horne was held in the Concert Hall.
Sydney Opera House
This Wikipedia article was originally based on the "Sydney Opera House", listed on the "New South Wales State Heritage Register" published by the Government of New South Wales under CC-BY 3.0 AU licence (accessed on 3 September 2017).
The Oprah Winfrey Show
During the episode, it was also announced that the entire audience had been invited to join Winfrey on an eight-day, all-expenses-paid trip to Sydney, Australia for a series of special episodes, via a plane piloted by Travolta. On December 11, 2010, Winfrey arrived in Sydney to record shows at the Sydney Opera House. Winfrey and her 300 American audience members were officially welcomed at a cocktail party in Sydney's Botanical Gardens overlooking Sydney Harbour. The beach-themed party, hosted by New South Wales Premier Kristina Keneally, featured live music and a fireworks display over the water which culminated in the lighting of a red 'O' on the Harbour Bridge. The episodes in Australia were coordinated between Harpo Studios, Tourism Australia, Tourism New South Wales, the Sydney Opera House, Tourism Victoria, Tourism Queensland, R. M. Williams and Network Ten. The federal government of Australia spent $1.5 million on the event while the government of the state of New South Wales spent an additional $1–2 million to promote the region. Tourism minister Martin Ferguson said "I think it's money well spent". In addition, Tourism Victoria spent a further A$650,000.
Garden Palace
The Garden Palace was a large, purpose-built exhibition building constructed to house the Sydney International Exhibition in 1879 in Sydney, Australia. It was designed by James Barnet and constructed by John Young, at a cost of ₤191,800 in only eight months. This was largely due to the importation from England of electric lighting, which enabled work to be carried out around the clock.
History of Sydney
To relieve congestion on the Sydney Harbour Bridge, the Sydney Harbour Tunnel opened in August 1992. The 2.3 kilometer underwater tunnel cost A$554 million to construct. Built to withstand earthquakes and sinking ships, in the early 21st century it carries around 75,000 vehicles a day.
History of Sydney
A new skyline of concrete and steel skyscrapers swept away much of the old lowrise and often sandstone skyline of early Sydney: Australia Square Tower, constructed in 1967 and designed by modernist architect Harry Seidler became a city landmark, surpassed in 1981 by Sydney Tower ("Centrepoint") as the tallest building in Sydney at 305 m. By the late 1960s, bulldozers were encroaching on The Rocks – European settlement's oldest Sydney precinct – saved only by public protests aimed at preserving 'working class housing' close to the Central Business District (which resulted also in considerable colonial era architecture being preserved in one precinct next to Circular Quay). In 1973, after a long period of planning and construction, the Sydney Opera House was officially opened. The building was from a design by Jørn Utzon. It became a symbol not only of Sydney, but of the Australian nation and was inscribed by UNESCO in 2007.
Utzon's House in Hellebæk
After his family moved to Helsingør in 1937, Utzon — who was then 18 — became ever more attached to the area. The house remained his base for the rest of his life. "It's my laboratory," he once commented. It was in his Hellebæk study that he began working on the design of the Sydney Opera House in 1959.
Sydney Opera House
Apart from the tile of the shells and the glass curtain walls of the foyer spaces, the building's exterior is largely clad with aggregate panels composed of pink granite quarried at Tarana. Significant interior surface treatments also include off-form concrete, Australian white birch plywood supplied from Wauchope in northern New South Wales, and brush box glulam.
Sydney Symphony Orchestra
Sir Eugene Goossens was succeeded by Nikolai Malko, Dean Dixon, Moshe Atzmon and Willem van Otterloo. Under van Otterloo, the orchestra made an eight-week European tour in 1974 which culminated in two concerts in Amsterdam and The Hague. Also under van Otterloo, the orchestra established the Concert Hall of the Sydney Opera House as its home base for most of its concerts.
International Convention Centre Sydney
ICC Sydney is an 1.5 billion development being delivered through a Public Private Partnership (PPP) with the New South Wales Government and Darling Harbour Live (comprising Lend Lease, Hostplus, Capella Capital, AEG Ogden and Spotless). The development of ICC Sydney is part of a broader 3.4 billion revitalisation of Darling Harbour. Upon completion, ICC Sydney will adjoin a new 590 room luxury hotel tower (under the Sofitel brand), a residential and commercial development (Darling Square), pedestrian boulevard and improved public domain that are all being created as part of the Darling Harbour development. The development will also include a reconfiguration of Tumbalong Park, providing an additional of green space acting as a new adaptable event space.The 1989 Sir John Sulman Medal for Public Architecture was awarded to Philip Cox Richardson Taylor Partners as joint winners for Sydney Exhibition Centre, Darling Harbour which was demolished in 2014 to make way for the new development. Architects John Andrews and Philip Cox spoke out over the demolition of the Sydney Convention and Exhibition Centre completed in 1988, criticising the fact that the existing structures had not been incorporated into the new development.
Sydney Opera House
The design of the roof was tested on scale models in wind tunnels at University of Southampton and later NPL in order to establish the wind-pressure distribution around the roof shape in very high winds, which helped in the design of the roof tiles and their fixtures.
Woodstock Opera House
Erected in 1889, the Opera House was designed and constructed by Elgin-based architect Smith Hoag at a cost of $25,000. The construction materials are mostly of local origin including limestone, terra cotta, fieldstone, white brick, and sandstone. Its architectural style is a mixture of late Victorian-era tastes combined with Early American, Midwestern, Gothic, and even Moorish elements. The interior is modeled after the showboats of the time, with dimensions and decorations that imitate many of those grand floating theatres.
Frederick Gye
The opera during the seasons of 1856 and 1857, commencing 15 April 1856, was held in the Lyceum Theatre, where in the first season forty operas were given, and advertised as being under Gye's direction. The renters and proprietors of Covent Garden finding themselves unable to collect the money to rebuild that theatre, Gye with great energy raised or became accountable for £120,000, the sum which the new structure cost. The opera house, from the designs of Edward Middleton Barry, R.A., was commenced and completed in the short period of six months.
Sydney Opera House
The Sydney Opera House opened the way for the immensely complex geometries of some modern architecture. The design was one of the first examples of the use of computer-aided design to design complex shapes. The design techniques developed by Utzon and Arup for the Sydney Opera House have been further developed and are now used for architecture, such as works of Gehry and blobitecture, as well as most reinforced concrete structures. The design is also one of the first in the world to use araldite to glue the precast structural elements together and proved the concept for future use.
Sydney Symphony Orchestra
The Sydney Symphony performs around 150 concerts a year to a combined annual audience of more than 350,000. The regular subscription concert series are mostly performed at the Sydney Opera House, but other venues around Sydney are used as well, including the City Recital Hall at Angel Place and the Sydney Town Hall. The Town Hall was the home of the orchestra until the opening of the Opera House in 1973. Since then, most concerts have been taking place in the Opera House's Concert Hall (capacity: 2,679 seats). A major annual event for the orchestra is Symphony in the Domain, a free evening outdoor picnic concert held in the summer month of January in the large city park known as The Domain. This event draws audiences of over 80,000 and is a long-established part of the Sydney summer cultural calendar.
Sydney Opera House
For the first stage, Utzon worked successfully with the rest of the design team and the client, but, as the project progressed, the Cahill government insisted on progressive revisions. They also did not fully appreciate the costs or work involved in design and construction. Tensions between the client and the design team grew further when an early start to construction was demanded despite an incomplete design. This resulted in a continuing series of delays and setbacks while various technical engineering issues were being refined. The building was unique, and the problems with the design issues and cost increases were exacerbated by commencement of work before the completion of the final plans.
Sydney Tower
Designed by Australian architect Donald Crone, the first plans for Sydney Tower were unveiled in March 1968. Construction of the office building commenced in 1970, and tower construction began in 1975. Prior to construction of the tower, the height limit in Sydney had been set at , to allow for the harbour’s flying boats that were popular before the modern jet era.
Sydney Opera House
On 28 June 2007, the Sydney Opera House became a UNESCO World Heritage Site, having been listed on the (now defunct) Register of the National Estate since 1980, the National Trust of Australia register since 1983, the City of Sydney Heritage Inventory since 2000, the New South Wales State Heritage Register since 2003, and the Australian National Heritage List since 2005.
Tourism in Sydney
The Sydney Opera House is one of the most distinctive and famous 20th-century buildings, and one of the most famous performing arts venues in the world. Situated on Bennelong Point in Sydney Harbour, with parkland to its south and close to the equally famous Sydney Harbour Bridge, the building and its surroundings form an iconic Australian image.
History of Australia since 1945
The iconic Sydney Opera House finally opened in 1973 after numerous delays. In the same year, Patrick White became the first Australian to win a Nobel Prize for Literature. Australian History had begun to appear on school curriculums by the 1970s and from the early 1970s, the Australian cinema began to produce the Australian New Wave of feature films based on uniquely Australian themes. Film funding began under the Gorton government, but it was the South Australian Film Corporation that took the lead in supporting filmmaking and among their great successes were quintessential Australian films "Sunday Too Far Away" (1974) "Picnic at Hanging Rock" (1975), "Breaker Morant" (1980) and "Gallipoli" (1981). The national funding body, the Australian Film Commission, was established in 1975.
Ove Arup
Arup was the design engineer for the Sydney Opera House in Sydney, Australia from the project's start in 1957 to its completion in 1973. An iconic building making groundbreaking use of precast concrete, structural glue and computer analysis, this made Arup's reputation, and that of his firm, despite the extremely difficult working relationship with the architect, Jørn Utzon.
Sydney Opera House
The building and its surrounds occupy the whole of Bennelong Point on Sydney Harbour, between Sydney Cove and Farm Cove, adjacent to the Sydney central business district and the Royal Botanic Gardens, and close by the Sydney Harbour Bridge.
Sydney Festival
Not without controversy, the festival has faced challenges with profitability in its early years and was subject to a riot at a New Year's Eve concert at Sydney Opera House in 1980, when 68 people were arrested and 150 were taken to hospital; and criticism about the festival's artistic credibility.
Lexington Opera House
Private and public campaigns were established to educate and inform the public regarding the history and tradition of the Opera House's significance to the community. Building inspectors determined that it would be cheaper to renovate the Opera House for $2.5 million than to reconstruct a new building for $7 million. The Opera House was purchased by the city as part of the Lexington Center Corporation and was provided financial assistance from the Opera House Fund, Inc. The fund was developed by local philanthropists William T. Young and George and Linda Carey.
Penn South
Early on in the construction process, supporters of Penn South wanted to include "Chelsea" in the name, in order to better integrate it with the surrounding community. The New York state government awarded $2.42 million toward the Penn South project in April 1960. The construction of the development was funded by a 20-year, $23 million mortgage, to be repaid between 1962 and 1982 at a rate of 5.125%. In May 1960, it was announced that the historic Grand Opera House on 23rd Street would be demolished to make way for Penn South. The theater burned down in a fire the next month. RKO Pictures later constructed a new theater called Chelsea West Cinemas in Penn South near the site of the old opera house, now used by the School of Visual Arts as the SVA Theater.
Danes Worldwide
Danes Worldwide was also involved in the establishment of the Fredensborg Houses, now a self-owning institution, in Fredensborg north of Copenhagen, which provide cheap and attractive housing on a rental basis for Danes who return home after long periods abroad. Located next to Fredensborg Golf Course and Fredensborg Palace, the housing complex was built from 1960 to 1963 to the design of Jørn Utzon, architect of Sydney Opera House. The attached houses come in two sizes, 73 and 130 square metres, and have low rental rates.
Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller
The Copenhagen Opera House, at a cost of 2.3 billion kroner, is one of the most expensive opera houses ever built, was donated by The A.P. Møller and Chastine Mc-Kinney Møller Foundation. It is situated directly across the harbour from the royal residence, Amalienborg Palace, and within sight of his Maersk headquarters. In the same area, Møller donated Amaliehaven, a park between the Palace and the harbour in the 1980s.
Sydney Harbour Tunnel
The total construction cost of the project was A$554.25 million. $A223 million of this is an interest-free loan from the NSW Government, to be repaid at the conclusion of the operating contract in August 2022 when the tunnel will be transferred to public ownership. The government has also guaranteed an Ensured Revenue Stream (ERS) to the operator, whereby it makes up the shortfall between toll collections and the guaranteed amount. As toll revenues have been below the projected amount, in 2008 for example, the government paid the operator $58.9 million, with the total amount forecast to be $A1.1 billion from 2008 to 2022. The NSW Auditor-General has also raised concerns that the tunnel's expenses may make the operating company default on the $A223 million loan, however the government remains confident in it.
New South Wales
As Australia's most populous state, New South Wales is home to a number of cultural institutions of importance to the nation. In music, New South Wales is home to the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, Australia's busiest and largest orchestra. Australia's largest opera company, Opera Australia, is headquartered in Sydney. Both of these organisations perform a subscription series at the Sydney Opera House. Other major musical bodies include the Australian Chamber Orchestra. Sydney is host to the Australian Ballet for its Sydney season (the ballet is headquartered in Melbourne). Apart from the Sydney Opera House, major musical performance venues include the City Recital Hall and the Sydney Town Hall.
Marysville Opera House
The new opera house was built the following year by local contractor A.E. Heider, at a cost of $20,000 (). The cornerstone was laid on March 26 and construction was finished by August 1911. The new building was designed to grow with the city and serve social functions as well as traveling shows. It was the second known structure in Snohomish County, Washington to use poured concrete, rather than timber or masonry, in its construction.
Sydney Opera House
The Sydney Opera House was formally opened by Queen Elizabeth II on 20 October 1973. A large crowd attended. Utzon was not invited to the ceremony, nor was his name mentioned. The opening was televised and included fireworks and a performance of Beethoven's Symphony No. 9.
Sydney Opera House
Before the Sydney Opera House competition, Jørn Utzon had won seven of the 18 competitions he had entered but had never seen any of his designs built. Utzon's submitted concept for the Sydney Opera House was almost universally admired and considered groundbreaking. The Assessors Report of January 1957, stated:
Lendlease Group
Previous works include the Adelaide Oval upgrade finished in 2014, and the Sydney Opera House, completed in 1973 where Lendlease were the principal contractor.
My Fair Lady
The Gordon Frost Organisation, together with Opera Australia, presented a production at the Sydney Opera House from August 30 to November 5, 2016. It was directed by Dame Julie Andrews and featured the set and costume designs of the original 1956 production by Oliver Smith and Cecil Beaton. The production sold more tickets than any other in the history of the Sydney Opera House. The show is then planned to tour to Brisbane from March 12 and Melbourne from May 11. The show's opening run in Sydney was so successful that in November 2016, ticket pre-sales were released for a re-run in Sydney, with the extra shows scheduled between August 24 and September 10, 2017, at the Capitol Theatre.
Live at the Sydney Opera House (Olivia Newton-John album)
Olivia Newton-John and the Sydney Symphony Orchestra: Live at the Sydney Opera House is a HD video (16:9) released in 2008 for a tour of four concerts at the Sydney Opera House of singer Olivia Newton-John. The show was done in March 2006 with her band and Sydney Symphony conducted by Rick King. Produced by Olivia's Gaia Productions.
In the DVD, the songs are merged with Newton-John and her daughter Chloe Lattanzi and band with visiting the beautiful sights of Sydney. The scenes outside take place mostly at Manly Beach and last about 20 minutes.
Sydney Opera House
Designed by Danish architect Jørn Utzon, the building was formally opened on 20 October 1973 after a gestation beginning with Utzon's 1957 selection as winner of an international design competition. The Government of New South Wales, led by the premier, Joseph Cahill, authorised work to begin in 1958 with Utzon directing construction. The government's decision to build Utzon's design is often overshadowed by circumstances that followed, including cost and scheduling overruns as well as the architect's ultimate resignation.
Jørn Utzon
In 1957, Utzon unexpectedly won the competition to design the Sydney Opera House. His submission was one of 233 designs from 32 countries, many of them from the most famous architects of the day. Although he had won six other architectural competitions previously, the Opera House was his first non-domestic project. One of the judges, Eero Saarinen, described it as "genius" and declared he could not endorse any other choice.
Melford International Terminal
Following the 2005 announcement of the Melford International Terminal, a group of marine infrastructure owners in Sydney, Nova Scotia have developed a competing proposal to dredge Sydney Harbour at an estimated cost of $40 million to accommodate deep draft container ships and build a 2–3 berth container terminal at the Sydport Industrial Park, the former navy base in Point Edward at a cost of $150 million. This proposal would not require construction of a rail line as the location is already served by the Cape Breton and Central Nova Scotia Railway. Prime Minister Stephen Harper visited Sydney in December 2010 where he announced the Government of Canada would contribute $20 million to the Sydney project, on top of a $15 million contribution from the Government of Nova Scotia and $2 million from the municipality and Nova Scotia Power. A contract was signed in April 2011 with Netherlands engineering firm Boskalis for the dredging work in Sydney Harbour to take place in fall 2011.
University of Sydney Library
The need for one location with enough space for the Sydney Conservatorium of Music prompted the State Government to step in and rebuild the Greenway building at a cost of A$144 million, and so; in 2001 upon completion of the works, the entire Conservatorium (including the library) moved back into what is now a remarkable renovation of a historical space.
Sydney Chamber Opera
Sydney Chamber Opera is an opera company based in Sydney, Australia. It is a resident company at Carriageworks. The company was founded in 2010 by Louis Garrick and Jack Symonds. Its first production was in February 2011 and has since produced between two and four twentieth and twenty-first century chamber operas each year. Its repertoire typically consists of world premieres of Australian operas and recent international works receiving their Australian premieres, including stagings of song cycles or non-traditional stage works.
Reserve Bank of Australia building, Sydney
The Sydney Reserve Bank building was designed by the Commonwealth Department of Works, Bank and Special Project Division (Sydney) in 1959 under the direction of a Design Committee consisting of: C. Mc Growther, Superintendent of Reserve Bank Premises; H.I. Ashworth, Consulting Architect (Sydney University); C.D. Osborne, Director of Architecture Department of Works; R.M. Ure, Chief of Preliminary Planning, Department of Works; F.C. Crocker Architect in charge, Bank Section, Dept. of Works; and G.A. Rowe, Supervising Architect, Bank Section, Dept. of Works. The consulting engineer was D. Rudd and Partners and the builder was E.A. Watts Pty Limited. The site was cleared in 1961 and the building was completed by 1964 ready for occupation in January 1965. It was built to accommodated more than 1850 people at a cost of ten million dollars.
Sydney Town Hall
The construction of Sydney Town Hall commenced in 1869, and it was designed to be a symbol of the wealth and status of the city. The building was constructed in two stages, Stage I: 1868 - 1878 and Stage II: the Main Hall, 1885 - 1890. The Town Hall design was the result of a competition, won by J. H. Willson. The Second Empire style design (including four eastern pavilions, clock tower, vestibule, reception room and Council Chamber) was modified by the City Engineer to reduce the cost. Following Willson's death Stage I was completed by successive City Architects. The design and construction were associated with intense political and personal battles. In 1875 council occupied the incomplete building in temporary offices on the lower floor. Discussion continued about Stage II, including a report by McBeath in 1878 with costs for the foundations. These proceeded in 1880 but were faulty and work halted.
Tourism in Sydney
Tourism in Sydney, Australia forms an important part of the city's economy. The city received 10.67 million domestic visitors and 4.05 million international visitors in year ending September 2018. The most famous attractions include the Sydney Opera House, and the Sydney Harbour Bridge. Other attractions include the Sydney Mardi Gras, Royal Botanical Gardens, Luna Park, the beaches and Sydney Tower.
Wheeler Opera House
Denver architect Willoughby J. Edbrooke designed a building that combined a basic Romanesque Revival form with some Italianate decorative touches. It was built in ten months from June 1888 to April 1889 at a cost of $100,000 ($ in contemporary dollars). Aspen had been the first city west of the Divide to be wired for electricity, and the theater's chandelier took advantage of that with 36 separate lights.
Opera House, Royal Tunbridge Wells
Construction was completed in 1902 to designs by architect John Briggs. When it was opened, it had a capacity of 1,100. In 1913, the Opera House hosted a series of charity fundraising concerts gather funds to rebuild the Nevill Ground's cricket pavilion after the original pavilion was destroyed in a suffragette arson attack. The Opera House was purchased by Union Cinemas in 1931 and turned into a cinema.
Sydney Opera House
Following Utzon's resignation, the acoustic advisor, Lothar Cremer, confirmed to the Sydney Opera House Executive Committee (SOHEC) that Utzon's original acoustic design allowed for only 2000 seats in the main hall and further stated that increasing the number of seats to 3000 as specified in the brief would be disastrous for the acoustics. According to Peter Jones, the stage designer, Martin Carr, criticised the "shape, height and width of the stage, the physical facilities for artists, the location of the dressing rooms, the widths of doors and lifts, and the location of lighting switchboards."The Opera House was formally completed in 1973, having cost $102 million. H.R. "Sam" Hoare, the Hornibrook director in charge of the project, provided the following approximations in 1973:
Stage I: podium Civil & Civic Pty Ltd approximately $5.5m.
Stage II: roof shells M.R. Hornibrook (NSW) Pty Ltd approximately $12.5m.
Stage III: completion The Hornibrook Group $56.5m.
Separate contracts: stage equipment, stage lighting and organ $9.0m.
Fees and other costs: $16.5m.
Joseph Cahill
On 5 February 1959, Cahill signed the contract for the first stage of building works for the Opera House with the Chairman of Lendlease Corporation and Civil & Civic, Dick Dusseldorp, and the managing director of Brederos, Jan de Vries. On the occasion of the official start of building and the laying of the foundation plaque on 2 March 1959, Cahill declared that the Sydney Opera House, "will stand not merely as an outstanding example of modern architecture or even as a world famous opera house, but as a shrine in which the great artists of the world may be seen and heard and our own artists may display the flowering of Australian culture."
Sydney Super Dome
Various measures were made at the request of the Sydney Organising Committee for the Olympic Games (SOCOG) for environmentally friendly design measures. In its early years, the Sydney Super Dome used renewable energy for a fraction of its power supply, provided by EnergyAustralia's green power scheme. The venue saw use of green power through a deal with EnergyAustralia that lasted the duration of the 2000 Summer Olympics and the five years following. The Super Dome's power architecture includes 1,176 photovoltaic solar panels, installed on the arena's roof, which provide 10% of the venue's daily energy consumption, estimated at ~8612MWh annually. Energy efficient lighting and heating/cooling systems were also installed in the venue. The roof's drainage system consists over 2000m of high-density polyethylene pipes, in addition to nearly 3000m of cast iron and copper pipes used in the venue's plumbing system, and 1000m of vitrified clay pipes that make up the Super Dome's surrounding stormwater drainage system. The Super Dome was also one of many venues built at Sydney Olympic Park that made use of recycled timber, used to construct the exterior balconies of the venue. The timber was sourced from Kempsey, and Oberon, along with local sources in Sydney. Additionally, polypropylene seats with nylon arms and mountings make up the Super Dome's stands.
Sydney Opera House
The facility features a modern expressionist design, with a series of large precast concrete "shells", each composed of sections of a sphere of radius, forming the roofs of the structure, set on a monumental podium. The building covers of land and is long and wide at its widest point. It is supported on 588 concrete piers sunk as much as below sea level.
Sydney Symphony Orchestra
The Sydney Opera House, while among the most famous buildings of the 20th century, is problematic for the orchestra. The SSO was instrumental in calling for a new Opera House to be built and it was always intended to be their home venue. However, control of the Opera House has always rested with a separate body, the Sydney Opera House Trust, and the two institutions have had conflicts.
Sydney Hospital
The deteriorated centre building was demolished in 1879 and in 1880 Thomas Rowe won an architectural competition held to find a new design with his Victorian Classical Revival design. Rowe was heavily criticised by his peers for the practice of under quoting building costs in order to win a competition, and the Sydney Infirmary was his "cause célèbre". Work halted for some years after partial construction, awaiting the approval of additional funds from the New South Wales parliament. Architect John Kirkpatrick completed the new hospital in 1894 to a revised design.
Davis Hughes
With the election of the Askin government in 1965, Hughes became Minister for Public Works, with responsibility for, among other things, the completion of the Sydney Opera House. Hughes refused to accept Jørn Utzon's approach to managing the Opera House project and, specifically, the construction of plywood prototypes for its interiors. Hughes refused to pay a fee claim for £51,000, which meant that Utzon could not pay his staff. After a heated discussion about the claim, Utzon sent a letter of withdrawal to Hughes on 28 February 1966, stating: "You have forced me to the leave the job". In his media announcement made only hours after receiving the letter, Hughes claimed it was Utzon's 'resignation'.
Wauchope, New South Wales
Wauchope's economy was traditionally based on the timber industry. At different stages in its history, more timber was transported out of Wauchope than out of any other town in Australia (via Wauchope railway station). Timber from Wauchope was used in the construction of the Sydney Opera House.
Perth Concert Hall (Western Australia)
The auditorium features a specially commissioned 3000-pipe organ surrounded by a 160-person choir gallery and an audience seating capacity of 1,729. The organ, individually designed, cost $100,000 and was commissioned by Ronald Sharp of Sydney, who was also responsible for the organ at the Sydney Opera House. The larger pipes for the organ were imported from the Netherlands. Don Bailey recollects that Ron Sharp was an ‘extraordinarily talented person, largely self-educated, who has to his credit the design and construction of a number of organs, mostly in New South Wales. A nine-foot Steinway orchestral concert grand piano (Model D) was also imported from West Germany for installation in the Hall.
Opera Australia
Opera Australia is the principal opera company in Australia. Based in Sydney, its performance season at the Sydney Opera House accompanied by the Australian Opera and Ballet Orchestra runs for approximately eight months of the year, with the remainder of its time spent in the Arts Centre Melbourne, where it is accompanied by Orchestra Victoria. In 2004, the company gave 226 performances in its subscription seasons in Sydney and Melbourne, attended by more than 294,000 people.
Sydney Opera House
Utzon left the project on 28 February 1966. He said that Hughes's refusal to pay him any fees and the lack of collaboration caused his resignation and later famously described the situation as "Malice in Blunderland". In March 1966, Hughes offered him a subordinate role as "design architect" under a panel of executive architects, without any supervisory powers over the House's construction, but Utzon rejected this. Utzon left the country never to return.
Opera Australia
While not yet appearing with this company, Joan Sutherland, then an internationally known Australian soprano, and her husband, the conductor Richard Bonynge, helped the cause of opera in general in Australia during the 1960s. Sutherland's name was also linked to the progress of the Sydney Opera House, begun in 1957 and still undergoing a lengthy and controversial construction. By the time 'La Stupenda' appeared there in 1974, one year after the opening of the theatre, the company was a leading repertory company with a large chorus and a roster of experienced Australian principals supplemented by guest singers and conductors.
Sydney Gardens
The Sydney Hotel was built within the gardens. It later became the Holburne Museum. The original design for the hotel, prepared by Thomas Baldwin in 1794, was a two-storey building which would serve the pleasure gardens. After Baldwin was bankrupted his design for the hotel was not implemented. Instead a three-storey building was designed by Charles Harcourt Masters. The foundation stone was laid in 1796 and the building was ready by 1799. Visitors entered the gardens through the Hotel. Projecting from the rear of the building at first floor level was a conservatory and a semi-circular orchestra with a wide covered loggia below. Two semi-circular rows of supper boxes projected from the sides of the building.
European Australians
The Sydney Opera House was formally opened on 20 October 1973, by Queen Elizabeth II. After a gestation beginning with Utzon's 1957 selection as winner of an international design competition. The government of New South Wales, led by the premier, Joseph Cahill, authorised work to begin in 1958 with Utzon directing construction. The government's decision to build Utzon's design is often overshadowed by circumstances that followed, including cost and scheduling overruns as well as the architect's ultimate resignation.
Can Lis
Utzon visited Majorca in 1966 when returning from Australia after disagreements with the authorities about how to complete his iconic Sydney Opera House. He was enchanted by the island and decided to build a summer residence there. The basic concept of the villa is similar to the design for the house Utzon had intended to build in Sydney: a number of pavilions arranged to serve the different functions of the building.
Civil and Civic
Civil and Civic went on to become Australia's leading provider of project management services in the construction industry, delivering a number of landmark projects including Stage I of the Sydney Opera House, Australia's first high-rise (Caltex House), and the world's first high-rise strata title apartment building (Blues Point Tower).
Sydney Opera House
Though its name suggests a single venue, the building comprises multiple performance venues which together host well over 1,500 performances annually, attended by more than 1.2 million people. Performances are presented by numerous performing artists, including three resident companies: Opera Australia, the Sydney Theatre Company and the Sydney Symphony Orchestra. As one of the most popular visitor attractions in Australia, more than eight million people visit the site annually, and approximately 350,000 visitors take a guided tour of the building each year. The building is managed by the Sydney Opera House Trust, an agency of the New South Wales State Government.
Music of Sydney
The Sydney Symphony is internationally renowned and regularly performs in the Concert Hall (2,600 seats) of the Sydney Opera House under Chief Conductor Vladimir Ashkenazy. City Recital Hall is dedicated mainly to chamber music and chamber orchestra concerts, featuring many famous international artists as well as concert series by fine local groups such as the renowned Australian Chamber Orchestra and Sydney's foremost Baroque orchestra, the Australian Brandenburg Orchestra. 
Opera Australia, the world's third-busiest opera company, has its headquarters in Sydney and performs a busy program of mainly classical and occasionally contemporary operas at the Opera Theatre of the Sydney Opera House. Sydney is the birthplace of the composer George Frederick Boyle.
Architecture of Sydney
Opened in 1973, the Sydney Opera House was designed by Danish architect Jørn Utzon. Its construction was partly financed by the Opera House Lottery. Utzon left under acrimonious circumstances before the building was finished; later work was completed by other architects. Located on Bennelong Point on Sydney Harbour, the building is a World Heritage Site. The tallest point in the city is the Sydney Tower built in the late 1970s-early 1980s, when height restrictions were far more lenient. The observation tower provides views of the entire city.
Postmodern architecture
The Sydney Opera House in Sydney, Australia, by the Danish architect Jørn Utzon (1918–2008) is one of the most recognizable of all works of postwar architecture, and spans the transition from modernism to postmodernism. Construction began in 1957 but it was not completed until 1973 due to difficult engineering problems and growing costs. The giant shells of concrete soar over the platforms which form the roof of the hall itself. The architect resigned before the structure was completed, and the interior was designed largely after he left the project. The influence of the Sydney Opera House, can be seen in later concert halls with soaring roofs made of undulating stainless steel.
Sydney Opera House
It was also a first in mechanical engineering. Another Danish firm, Steensen Varming, was responsible for designing the new air-conditioning plant, the largest in Australia at the time, supplying over of air per minute, using the innovative idea of harnessing the harbour water to create a water-cooled heat pump system that is still in operation today.
Woodland Opera House
Designed in 1885 by Thomas J. Welsh, a prominent San Francisco architect, for the amount of $28,000, it was the first opera house to serve the Sacramento Valley. The builder for the community theater was Woodland contractor William Henry Curson. Several years later in July 1892 a fire that started in Dead Cat Alley behind the Opera House destroyed much of what is now the Downtown Woodland Historic District, including the Opera House. There was uncertainty whether the House would be rebuilt when a locally renowned businessman, David N. Hershey, purchased the site. Other local businessmen supported the project in addition to Hershey. The Opera House was rebuilt between 1895 and 1896 by local contractor William H. Winne at the cost of $8,990. Many of the materials from the original building were used including some of the partially standing walls.
MLC Building, North Sydney
Completed at a final cost of A£4.5 million the MLC Building was officially opened by Prime Minister Robert Menzies on 22 August 1957, who expressed that "The view [from the top floor] gives me such a new conception of Sydney that quite frankly I'm beginning to like the place".
Modern architecture
The Danish architect Jorn Utzon (1918-) worked briefly with Alvar Aalto, studied the work of Le Corbusier, and traveled to the United States to meet Frank Lloyd Wright. In 1957 he designed one of the most recognizable modernist buildings in the world; the Sydney Opera House.. He is known for the sculptural qualities of his buildings, and their relationship with the landscape. The five concrete shells of the structure resemble seashells by the beach. Begun in 1957, the project encountered considerable technical difficulties making the shells and getting the acoustics right. Utzon resigned in 1966, and the opera house was not finished until 1973, ten years after its scheduled completion.
Opera Australia Orchestra
OAO's core strength is 69 players (compared with Sydney Symphony's 110) but is currently down to 59 (August 2012). Each player is selected by audition; if successful there is a trial process which may require 12 months to complete. More than 120 other musicians may join the OAO as casual musicians during a financial year; this is due in part to Occupational Health and Safety Act NSW 2000 requirements regarding noise levels associated with working in the Sydney Opera House orchestra pit.
The OAO provides orchestral accompaniment to Opera Australia and The Australian Ballet and is one of the few opera orchestras in the world that operates in a repertory style of operation over a period, or season, that can be some months in length. Other opera houses that operate this way are The Metropolitan Opera in New York City, The Royal Opera House Covent Garden in London and La Scala, Milan. 'Repertory style' also infers that over time, certain composers and operas become considered 'standard' to the working operation of the company. Composers Puccini, Verdi, Handel, Bizet and Wagner are standard parts of the repertory. OAO includes the ballet repertory pieces of Tchaikovsky, Minkus, and Prokofiev. Typically, opera consumes January–March and June–October. Ballet fills the rest of the year.
Economy of Sydney
Sydney received 8.2 million visitors in 2016, an 11.4 per cent increase from 2015. The main sources of Sydney's tourists were from north-east and south-east Asia. The Vivid Sydney festival, held annually each winter, attracted 1.7 million visitors in 2015–it is the biggest festival in Australia and one of the biggest of its kind in the world. The most visited landmark in the city is the Sydney Opera House, located at Bennelong Point, and is also the most visited landmark in Australia–the building received a $202 million renovation in 2017, known as the Renewal Project, and accommodates an average yearly audience of two million people. Tourism in Sydney generates approximately $30 billion to the state (NSW) economy each year according to 2010 statistics.