The History of the Paris Opera
The Paris Opera, also known as the Palais Garnier and the Opera Garnier, is a 2,2000 seat opera house in Paris, France. Designed by architect Charles Garnier, it is known as one of the great architectural feats of its time. When the Paris Opera opened, it was officially named the Academie Nationale de Musique---Theatre de l'Opera. In 1978 it was renamed the theatre National de l'Opera de Paris, and again in 1989, to the Palais Garnier. Still, most know and refer to it as the Paris Opera.
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History
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The Paris Opera was commissioned by Napoleon III after an assassination attempt on him and Empress Eugenie as they were leaving the Theatre de l'Academie Royale de Musique. The Emperor decided to have a design competition for the new opera house, which Charles Garnier won in 1860. In 1870, due to complications arising from the Franco-Prussian war, construction was abruptly stopped and the unfinished building was used warehouse and military observation post. The Paris Opera was finally completed in 1875, 15 years after Garnier won the design competition.
The Phantom of The Opera
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When the Paris Opera first opened, writer Gaston Loius Alfred Leroux was so moved by the beauty of the building that he asked if he could explore the entire building alone, including the parts not open to the public, and he was granted permission to do so.
In 1896, one of the counterweights from the chandelier fell from the ceiling, killing one of the opera patrons. This event, along with Leroux's knowledge of and love for the building, inspired him to write "The Phantom Of The Opera."
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Size
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When the Paris Opera was completed, it was one of the largest theatre venues in the world. The Paris Opera encompasses nearly 120,000 square feet. The stage was built to be 185 feet high, 568 feet long, and 333 feet wide, allowing nearly 500 players on stage at one time.
Architecture
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Designed in the typically ornate Beaux-Arts style, the Paris Opera contains elaborate multi-colored marble columns and statues depicting the deities of Greek mythology. Between the columns in the front entrance of the building there are bronze sculptures of some great composers including Mozart, Beethoven, Rossini, and Meyerbeer. A group of statues on the central roof were designed by Aime Millet depicting Apollo, poetry, and music, and sculptures by Fracois Juoffroy and Jean-Baptiste Claude Eugene Guillaume represent harmony and instrumental music.
The interior of the Paris Opera is made up of many corridors, stairwells, alcoves and elevated landings, making it an ideal place to socialize and talk during intermission. With velvet and gold leaf as far the eye can see, the inside of the Paris Opera is typically Baroque in its interior design. The main chandelier weighs nearly six and a half tons, and it took nearly 100 sculptors, painters, and stucco experts to complete the artwork inside.
Architectural Influence
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The Paris Opera has become an important prototype for opera houses all over the world. The Juliusz Slowacki Theatre in Krakow, Poland was built in 1893, and very much resembles the the Paris Opera, as does the Warsaw Philarmony, built in 1901. The Thomas Jefferson Building at the Library of Congress in Washington D.C. was also modeled after the Paris Opera.
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