The Norwegian capital will showcase a new opera building

Oslo - The Norwegian capital Oslo is preparing a celebration for all lovers of opera, ballet, and modern architecture on April 12th. A ceremonial gala evening with the participation of King Harald V. will mark the opening of a new opera building, which aspires to rank alongside the most famous opera houses in the world, such as La Scala in Milan, the Metropolitan Opera in New York, or the opera in Sydney. According to the Norwegian press, a highlight of this year's repertoire will be a ballet performance by the renowned Czech choreographer Jiří Kylián.
    A remarkable architectural work is located near the city center on the shores of the Oslo fjord. Characteristic for Scandinavia, the very low building, which houses three opera halls— the largest of which accommodates 1,356 seated viewers—sensitively blends into the surrounding natural environment and represents a smooth transition from the sea to the land with its original combination of variously inclined platforms made of light marble forming the roof.
    The project was designed by the architectural studio Snöhetta, which has made its mark in the history of world architecture with the design of the new Alexandria Library opened in Cairo in 2001. The studio was co-founded in 1988 by Czech architect Martin Roubík, who lives in Norwegian emigration.
    The project for the new Norwegian opera was completed six months earlier than originally planned for October 2008 and cost 3.3 billion Norwegian kroner (10.4 billion CZK). However, the costs are expected to be recouped soon. A public opinion poll revealed that a full half of the residents of Norway's capital expressed their intention to visit the new home of the Norwegian opera this year.
    Interested parties do not have to attend an opera or ballet performance directly; the opera also offers sightseeing tours for 100 Norwegian kroner (314 CZK). These can be reserved on the Norwegian opera's website, and excursions for tourists will soon be organized in ten languages, including Polish.
    The city is already preparing further enhancements to the opera surroundings in the Björvika area. Among the proposals is a cable car to the top of Ekeberg and two Ferris wheels modeled after the London Eye, partially sunk underground. While the journey up will provide an ideal view of the opera building, the fjord, and the entire city, the journey underground will feature a 3D film about Norwegian history projected on giant screens.
    The Norwegian Opera and Ballet, which did not have its own home until now and has been temporarily operating in the People's Theatre for nearly half a century, will present, among other things, the Norwegian premiere of Gershwin's musical Porgy and Bess, Verdi's opera Don Carlos, Mozart's opera Titus, and Strauss's operetta Die Fledermaus; the ballet program will include Tchaikovsky's classic Sleeping Beauty or The Nutcracker.
    The Norwegian newspaper Aftenposten advertises an extraordinary experience on May 24th with the premiere of a ballet performance by Czech choreographer Jiří Kylián titled Worlds Beyond. During this performance, viewers will embark on a tour of many of the opera's 1,100 rooms, beneath the stage and behind it. The evening will continue with five of Kylián's works.
    Guests invited to the inaugural gala evening include Norwegian King Harald V and Queen Sonja, Danish Queen Margrethe II, Swedish Crown Princess Victoria, and Icelandic President Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson. Prominent figures from Norway's political and cultural life, as well as 200 ordinary citizens who won entry tickets in a lottery, will also attend. Those who cannot make it to the opera on April 12th will at least be able to watch a spectacular fireworks display costing half a million Norwegian kroner (1.57 million CZK) over the city. The opening of the opera is compared in significance for Norway to the ceremonial opening of the Winter Olympics in Lillehammer in 1994.
    However, not only praise accompanies the start of operations of the new Norwegian opera building. The very first opera to be performed in the new building was supposed to be the modern Norwegian work Around the World in 80 Days on April 26th. Its preparation, however, was not completed in time, so the premiere had to be postponed until New Year's Eve 2009. Thus, the first opera performance in the new opera will be Verdi's Don Carlos mentioned above in September.
    From an architectural standpoint, the rapid yellowing of the pure white Italian marble, which was chosen as the main building material after extensive discussions over Norwegian stone, has caused a scandal. The cause of the staining of the "marble colossus," as the new opera building is referred to in the Norwegian press, remains a mystery even to experts before its opening.