Palais Garnier
1
Palais Garnier Palais Garnier
Former names
Acad€mie Nationale de Musique - Th€•tre de l'Op€ra (1875-1978), Th€•tre National de l'Op€ra de Paris (1978-1989)
Alternative names
Op€ra de Paris, L'Op€ra Garnier, Paris Op€ra
General information Type
Opera house
Architectural style
Beaux-Arts
Location
Place de l'Op€ra, Paris, France, Europe
Coordinates
48‚52€19•N 2‚19€54•E
Construction started 1862 Height
73.6 metres (241 ft)
[1]
Technical details Other dimensions
172 metres (564 ft) long
[1] 125 metres (410 ft) wide
Design and construction Architect
Charles Garnier
Garnier, known also as the Op€ra de Paris or Op€ra Garnier, Garnier, but more commonly as the Paris Op€ra, The Palais The Palais Garnier, is a 1,600-seat opera house on the Place de l'Op€ra in Paris, France, which was the primary home of the Paris Opera from 1875 until 1989. A grand building designed by Charles Garnier in the Neo-Baroque (or "Baroque Revival") style (it is also said to be of the related Second Empire style), it is regarded as one of the architectural masterpieces of its time. The building is located in the 9th arrondissement of Paris and is served by the metro station Op€ra and bus 21, 22, 27, 29, 42, 53, 66, 68, 81, 95. Upon its inauguration during 1875, the opera house was named officially the Acad€mie Nationale de Musique Th€•tre de l'Op€ra. It retained this title until 1978 when it was re-named the Th€•tre National de l'Op€ra de Paris.
After the opera company chose the Op€ra Bastille as their principal theatre upon its completion during 1989, the
Palais Garnier
theatre was re-named as the Palais Garnier , though Acad€mie Nationale de Musique is still sprawled above the columns of its front fa„ade. In spite of the change of names and the Opera company's relocation to the Op€ra Bastille, the Palais Garnier is still known by many people as the Paris Op€ra, as have all of the several theatres
which have served as the principal venues of the Parisian Opera and Ballet since its initiation.
History The Palais Garnier was designed as part of the great reconstruction of Paris during the Second Empire initiated by Emperor Napoleon III, who chose Baron Haussmann to supervise the reconstruction. During 1858 the Emperor authorized Haussmann to clear the required 12000 square metres (1.2 ha) of land on which to build a second theatre for the world-renowned Parisian Opera and Ballet companies. The project was the subject of architectural design competition during 1861, and was won by the architect Charles Garnier (1825 ‚ 1898). The foundation stone was laid during 1861, with the start of construction during 1862. Legend is that the Emperor's wife, the Empress Eug€nie, asked Garnier during the construction whether the building would be built in the Greek or Roman style, to which he replied: "It is in the Napoleon III style, Madame!"
Setbacks The construction of the opera house was plagued by numerous setbacks. One major problem which postponed the laying of the concrete foundation was the swampy ground under which flowed a subterranean lake, requiring the water to be removed by eight months of continual pumping. More setbacks came as a result of the disastrous Franco-Prussian War, the subsequent end of the Second French Empire, and the Paris Commune. During this time construction continued sporadically, and it was even rumoured that construction of the opera house might be abandoned.
Fire On 29 October 1873, an incentive to complete the Palais Garnier came when the previous theatre of the Paris Op€ra, known as the Salle Le Peletier, was destroyed by a fire which raged for 27 hours. The Salle Le Peletier had been the chief venue of the Paris Opera and Ballet since 1821. The Salle Le Peletier is also famous for housing the heyday of the romantic ballet (along with Her Majesty's Theatre in London).
Completion During late 1874 Garnier and his massive workforce completed the Palais Garnier . The Palais Garnier was inaugurated formally on January 15, 1875 with a lavish gala performance. The ball consisted of the third act of Fromental Hal€vy's 1835 opera La Juive, along with excerpts from Giacomo Meyerbeer's 1836 opera Les Huguenots. The ballet company performed a Grand Divertissement staged by the Paris Op€ra's Ma‚tre de Ballet en Chef Louis M€rant€, which consisted of the celebrated scene Le Jardin Anim€ from Joseph Mazilier's 1867 revival of
his ballet Le Corsaire, set to the music of L€o Delibes.
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Palais Garnier
3
Leroux's The Phantom of the Opera During 1896, the falling of one of the counterweights for the grand chandelier resulted in the death of one person. This incident, as well as the underground lake, cellars, along with the other elements of the Opera House even the building itself were the inspirations of Gaston Leroux for his classic 1910 Gothic novel, The Phantom of the Opera.
Recent history During 1969, the theatre was given new electrical facilities, and during 1978 part of the original Foyer de la Danse was converted into new rehearsal space for
the Ballet company by the architect Jean-Loup Roubert. During 1994, restoration work began on the theatre, which consisted of modernizing the stage machinery
The Op€ra Garnier, a mixture of Neo-Renaissance and
and electrical facilities, while restoring and preserving
Neo-Baroque architecture.
the opulent d€cor, as well as strengthening the frame and foundation of the building. This restoration was completed during 2007.
The Grand Staircase
Palais Garnier
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Architecture and style Although slightly smaller in scale than its predecessor, the Th€•tre de l'Acad€mie Royale de Musique , the Palais Garnier is a building of exceptional opulence. It
seats an audience of about 2,200 under a central chandelier which weighs more than six tons, and has a huge stage with room to accommodate as many as 450 artists. The style is monumental and considered typically Beaux-Arts, with use of axial symmetry in plan, and its exterior ornamentation. The Palais is decorated opulently with elaborate multicolored marble friezes, columns, and lavish
The Grand Foyer
statuary, many of which portray deities of Greek mythology. Between the columns of the theatre's front fa„ade, there are bronze busts of many of the great composers, Mozart, Rossini, Daniel Auber, Beethoven, Meyerbeer, Fromental Hal€vy, Spontini, and Philippe Quinault. The central roof group, Apollo, Poetry, and Music, was the work of Aim€ Millet. The two gilded figural groups Harmony and Poetry were both designed by Charles Gumery, and the two smaller bronze Pegasus figures at either
end of the gable are from Eug…ne-Louis Lequesne. The facade incorporates major multifigure groups sculpted by Fran„ois Jouffroy ( Harmony), Jean-Baptiste Claude Eug…ne Guillaume ( Instrumental Music), Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux (The Dance, criticized for indecency), Jean-Joseph Perraud ( Lyrical Drama ), and other work by Gumery, Alexandre Falgui…re and others. The interior consists of interweaving corridors, stairwells, alcoves and landings allowing the movement of large numbers of people and space for socializing during intermission. Rich with velvet, gold leaf, and cherubim and nymphs, the interior is characteristic of Baroque sumptuousness. The ceiling area, which surrounds the chandelier, was given a new painting during 1964 by Marc Chagall. This painting was controversial, with many people feeling Chagall's work clashed with the style of the rest of the theater.
Influence abroad The building became one of the most inspirational architectural prototypes for the next thirty years. Several buildings in Poland were based on the design of the Palais Garnier, and include the Juliusz S†owacki Theatre in Krak‡w, built during 1893, The Lviv Theatre of Opera and Ballet in Lviv, built between 1897 and 1900 and also the Warsaw Philharmony edifice in Warsaw, built between 1900 and 1901.
The Warsaw Philharmony edifice about 1901. The building was destroyed
In Ukrainia, the influence of the Palais Garnier can be seen at the National Opera House of Ukraine edifice in Kiev, built during 1901. The Thomas Jefferson Building of the Library of Congress in Washington,
completely in a German air raid on Warsaw during 1939 and it was rebuilt after the war in the socialist realism [2] style
D.C. is modelled after Palais Garnier, most notably the facade and Great Hall. The Theatro Municipal do Rio de Janeiro (1909) was also modeled after Palais Garnier, particularly and Great Hall and stairs. The Amazon Theatre in Manaus (Brazil) built from 1884 to 1896. The overview is very similar, though the decoration is more simple.
Palais Garnier
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The Hanoi Opera House in Vietnam is considered to be a typical French colonial architectural monument in Vietnam and is also a small-scale replica of the Palais Garnier. The Saigon Opera House is a smaller counterpart.
Side view of the Juliusz Slowacki
Warsaw Philharmony
Maquette of the Lviv
National Opera House
theater
circa 1900
Theatre
of Ukraine
Thomas Je Jefferson Bu Building
The Am Amazonas th theater in in
Municipal theater of Rio de
Municipal Theater of Sˆo
Manaus, Brazil
Janeiro
Paulo
The Palais The Palais Garnier as seen circa
The
Apollo, Poetry and and Music roof
Apollo, Poetry
1900
Inauguration
sculpture by Aim€ Millet
and Music;
Image gallery
ceremony held
Apollo's lyre
at the Grand
detail
Escalier , 1875
Liberty roof sculpture by
Lyrical
The Dance by
Bronze busts of Beethoven and
Charles Gumery
Drama
Jean-Baptiste
Mozart on the front fa„ade
fa„ade
Carpeaux
sculpture by Jean-Joseph Perraud
Palais Garnier
The Grand Foyer
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Detail from
Marc Chagall's ceiling,
the front
repainted in a modern style and which is very different from the colour scheme of the rest of the building. At the center is the grand chandelier.
References ‰ Allison, John (ed.), Great Opera Houses of the World , supplement to Opera Magazine, London 2003 ‰ Beauvert, Thierry, Opera Houses of the World , New York: The Vendome Press, 1995. ISBN 9780865659773. ‰ Guest, Ivor Forbes, Ballet of the Second Empire, London: Wesleyan University Press, 1974 ‰ Guest, Ivor Forbes, The Paris Opera Ballet , London: Wesleyan University Press, 2006 ‰ Kleiner, Fred S., Gardner's Art Through The Ages , Belmont: Thomsom Wadsworth, 2006 ISBN 0-534-63640-3. ‰ Zeitz, Karyl Lynn, Opera: the Guide to Western Europe's Great Houses, Santa Fe, New Mexico: John Muir Publications, 1991. ISBN 0-945465-81-5.
Notes [1] A View On Cities (2009). Op€ra de Paris Garnier. Retrieved on 2009-08-09 from http:/ / www.aviewoncities.com/ paris/ operagarnier.htm. [2]
(Polish) "Filharmonia Warszawska" (http:/ / www.warszawa1939.pl/ index.php?r1=jasna_5&r3=0). www.warszawa1939.pl. . Retrieved 2008-02-21.
External links ‰ Official website (http:/ / www.operadeparis.fr/ cns11/ live/ onp/ site/ index.php?&lang=en) (in English) ‰ History of architecture (http:/ / www.unav.es/ ha/ 007-TEAT/ operas-paris.htm) (in Spanish) ‰ The Palais Garnier (http:/ / paris1900.lartnouveau.com/ paris09/ l_opera_actuel.htm) current photographs and of the years 1900. ‰ Unused architectural drawings for the Op€ra de Paris by Charles Rohault de Fleury (http:/ / cca.qc.ca/ en/ collection/ 821-charles-rohault-de-fleury-and-the-opera-de-paris)
Article Sources and Contributors
Article Sources and Contributors Palais Garnier Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=430640453 Contributors: Abberley2, Acalamari, Acvb, Adam sk, Alamadte, AlanBarnet, Alsandro, Author, AxelBoldt, Baa, Being blunt, Beivushtang, Bkonrad, Blanckien, Blieusong, Bobanni, Borgx, Breakyunit, Cacophony, CalJW, Caltas, Carptrash, Caspian blue, Cheerbaby293, Cnbrb, CommonsDelinker, Crabula, CrownJewell, CryptoDerk, Daderot, DaiFh, Darwinius, Deror avi, Drat, Elekhh, Ensiform, Erri4a, Ev, EvilSuggestions, Fluri, FunkyCanute, Funnyhat, Geodyde, George The Dragon, Giano, Gilliam, Gimboid13, Gonioul, Haunti, Howcheng, Iamunknown, Ilovedannyp, Insanephantom, Isis, JCGDIMAIWAT, JaGa, James086, Jan Arkesteijn, Javitomad, Jgsodre, JillandJack, Juliancolton, JulienD3, KTo288, Kendrick7, KudukGirl, Kuyku, LBehounek, Lambiam, Lazulilasher, LcawteHuggle, Lemon-s, Lightmouse, LilHelpa, Lockley, Look2See1, Luna Santin, Madder, Malachirality, Mamyles, Martim33, Michael Hardy, Mike hayes, Montrealais, Mrlopez2681, Neddyseagoon, Neofelis Nebulosa, Neutrality, Nicenicehomeslice, Niro5, No substitute for you, Nunh-huh, Olivier, Oxymoron83, Para, Paradiso, Paris 16, Patstuart, Pearle, Perohanych, Philip Trueman, Pieter Kuiper, Postlebury, Pufacz, Qloque, Quadell, Raptornet, Rettetast, Robert K S, Robert.Allen, Robertgreer, ST47, Saxophobia, Scottstensland, Seduisant, Sesu Prime, Sgt Pinback, SimonP, Sojournerjake, Someone else, Sovxx, Swimdude315, Synchronism, Tangent747, Tangopaso, Tarquin, TeslaMaster, The Fiddly Leprechaun, Thephotoplayer, Tide rolls, Tommy2010, Tschuman01, Vdegroot, Vegaswikian, Versus22, Viajero, Viva-Verdi, Warofdreams, WhisperToMe, Whjayg, Wikianon, WildCowboy, Xcanbiet, Yluijf, Zack Holly Venturi, Zaledin, Zanimum, 201 anonymous edits
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