Opera Bastille on the eponymous Parisian square is one of the "Big Projects" of French President Francois Mitterrand, the result of a large-scale (almost 800 participants) international competition, which was won in 1983 by the Uruguayan architect Carlos Ott. The building opened on the day of the bicentennial of the French Revolution in 1989, but the author's plan was not fully implemented. For example, the building has nothing to do with the park that starts nearby - the Viaduct of Arts.
The competition that has ended now is intended not only to complete what has been started, but also to increase the "capacity"
The Bastille Operas (it is there that the Paris National Opera shows its main performances, while the Palais Garnier hosts its ballet and more chamber opera productions), so the issues of logistics and technical equipment are extremely important. In addition, the building should be associated with its surroundings and included in the city life that is bubbling around.
Obviously, the latter goal is connected with the complex theme of the “elitism” of opera, which is popular with a narrow segment of connoisseurs, most often the wealthy. Therefore, in order to justify state support for this art form and the prominent place that such theaters physically occupy in cities, steps are being taken to architecturally "democratize" it. The most striking example is
the opera house in Oslo, where the entire roof-facade serves as a public space open to all, very popular with the townspeople, the lobby is open during the opening hours of the "cultural institution" to everyone - even during performances, etc. One of the most undemocratic opera houses in terms of prices, the Royal Opera House in London, Covent Garden, has emphasized its “affordability” with the reconstruction of the foyer twice in recent decades: in the late 1990s (by Dixon Jones) and more recently, as part of the project with the characteristic name Open Up (Bureau Stanton Williams and others).
Similarly, in Paris, architects propose to rebuild and expand the foyer, creating an "inner street" on two levels there. In addition, in addition to the existing three halls, including the main one for 2,745 people, the theater will have another one, a “modular space” for performances and rehearsals for 800 spectators. Scenery and other art-production workshops will receive new areas in the annex, which will connect the building with the Viaduct of the Arts: landscaping will "move" from there to the new structure.
Construction is scheduled to begin in 2019 and complete in 2023. The Henning Larsen team includes Parisian architects Reichen et Robert & Associes, stage lighting specialists dUCKS, acoustics consultants PEUTZ and CET Ingénierie.
