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Geneva: Grand Theatre
History
The City of Geneva had an opera house already in the 18th century. The building soon proved to be too small. It took another century to build a new, sumptuous opera house. The architect Jaqcues-Elisée Goss designed the opera house following the example of the famous Opera Garnier in Paris. For a long time, the opera house constituted the centre of the cultural life of Geneva.
In May 1951, all this beauty sank down in ashes: at a fire test with decorations on stage during a general rehearsal of the „Walküre“, the fire extended very quickly and destroyed the audience and the stage tower. The reconstruction was undertaken only ten years later.
The outer facade was rebuilt in the ancient style. The audience however was designed according to the taste of the 1960ies: wooden walls and a metallic, ornamented ceiling. It offers seats for 1400 spectators.
The building is surrounded by three streets, therefore an extension of the building with locals for administration and workshops was not possible.
The stage technical equipment was not renovated since that time. Already in 1984, the City of Geneva asked Biste and Gerling to do an expertise. The urgently necessary renovation was finally carried out in 1997/1998.
Historical view from outside
