Description

The Sydney Opera House is located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, as appointed on 28 June 2007. Designed by Jørn Utzon, a Danish architect, the Sydney Opera House is one of the most distinctive and famous 20th century buildings, and one of the most famous performing arts venues in the world. Situated on Bennelong Point in Sydney Harbour, with parkland to its south and close to the famous Sydney Harbour Bridge, the building and its surroundings form an iconic Australian image.

As well as many touring theatre, ballet, and musical productions, the Opera House is the home of Opera Australia, the Sydney Theatre Company and the Sydney Symphony. It is administered by the Opera House Trust, under the New South Wales Ministry of the Arts.

Description

The Sydney Opera House is an expressionist modern design, with a series of large precast concrete 'shells', each taken from a hemisphere of the same radius, forming the roofs of the structure. The Opera House covers 1.8 hectares (4.5 acres) of land. It is 183 metres (605 feet) long and about 120 metres (388 feet) wide at its widest point. It is supported on 580 concrete piers sunk up to 25 metres below sea level. Its power supply is equivalent for a town of 25,000 people. The power is distributed by 645 kilometres of electrical cable.

Performance venues and facilities

The Sydney Opera House contains five theatres, five rehearsal studios, two main halls, four restaurants, six bars and numerous souvenir shops.

The five theatres making up the performance facilities:

• The Concert Hall, with 2,679 seats, contains the Sydney Opera House Grand Organ, the largest mechanical tracker action organ in the world with over 10,000 pipes.
• The Opera Theatre, with 1,547 seats, is the main performance space for Opera Australia; it is also used by the Australian Ballet Company.
• The Drama Theatre, with 544 seats
• The Playhouse, with 398 seats
• The Studio Theatre, with 364 seats

Besides theatrical productions, venues at the Sydney Opera House are also used for functions such as weddings, parties and conferences.

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