The Sydney Opera House is one of Australia’s most iconic buildings in the world, so no trip to this country is complete without visiting it. This is a fascinating building, which is located on the shores of Sydney Harbour, and which is famous mainly for its architectural beauty, which has earned it the acknowledgement of World Heritage by UNESCO.
However, its fame is also founded on the fact that it is one of the most important places in the world when it comes to performing arts. This is thanks to the fact that many concerts and events take place there, to be precise, we are talking about 3000 performances a year.
While it may seem that this is all we need to know about this building, the truth is that there is still much to learn from it. So, next, we will take a look at some fun and interesting facts about the Sydney Opera House that many do not know and that are worth discovering.
1. There was a competition to design the building.
In 1956, a competition to design the future Opera House was held in Sydney, which had 232 participants and judges from as far away as the United States who participated in the selection of the best design. The winner of the competition was Danish architect Jorn Utzon, who received a cash prize of £ 5,000 for his design.
However, the competition would not be easy for him, as initially he had been rejected by three of the judges of the contest. But the beauty and extraordinary form of his proposal would fascinate the American architect Eero Saarinen, who served as the fourth judge of the competition and would be the maximum defender of his choice since he considered that his design was spectacular.
The funny thing is that before submitting his work, Utzon had never been to the site where the Sydney Opera House would be built. He only used his naval experience to study the maps of the port where the building would be built.
2. The Sydney Opera House is only closed two days a year.
Since its first opening in 1973, the Sydney Opera House has been open to visitors 24 hours a day, so that they can visit it any day of the year. However, you should know that of the 365 days of the year, there are two days in which you will not be able to do so, and they are December 25th and Holy Friday.
Although also, in the event of major natural disasters and extreme weather conditions, the Sydney Opera House will remain closed to the public for security reasons.
3. Queen Elizabeth II opened the Sydney Opera House.
At the opening ceremony of the Sydney Opera House on October 20th, 1973, the opening program featured Queen Elizabeth II, who officially opened the opera to the public. And she did so by delivering a speech in which she talked to the local community about the importance and significance of the opening of the Sydney Opera House.
4. Its construction took longer than expected
Construction work began in 1959 with 10,000 construction workers and the initial plan for the completion of the Sydney Opera House was 4 years. However, the works would stagnate after Jorn Utzon resigned as chief architect in 1966.
But in addition to the difficulty of recreating Utzon’s designs, the Australian government ran into other problems in completing it, although 14 years later and thanks to the participation of several of the best construction companies in the world, it would complete the construction of the Sydney Opera House successfully.
5. The construction of the Opera was expensive
Not only did the construction work take longer than anticipated, but the cost of the Sydney Opera House was also much higher than had been budgeted.
Originally, the budget required to build the Sydney Opera House had been estimated at $ 7 million. However, as a result of design complications and the delay of several years in the construction schedule, the work required a larger budget. The final cost of the Sydney Opera House would then be $ 102 million, amount that was 14 times more than the original budget, although it was paid by a state lottery.
6. The Sydney Opera House has appeared in several films
As we had mentioned, the Sydney Opera House is world famous and has become a must-see point of reference for Australia in the world. So it is not unusual that, due to this, it also appears in countless films, in which it tries to set a scene in Australia. To take just two as an example, we can mention “Mission Impossible 2” with Tom Cruise, or “Finding Nemo” by Disney Pixar.
7. The Sydney Opera House varies its lighting according to the time of year
Once the sun goes down, the Sydney Opera House lights its candles with thousands of brightly coloured lights displaying shapes and images. But what some visitors may not notice is that, depending on the time of year, the theme of its lighting will change along with the images it displays.
8. Its cooling system uses seawater from the surrounding port.
Musical instruments are said to work best at a certain temperature and humidity level. So, to maintain the ideal temperature, a cooling system is employed that uses the cold water from the surrounding port as the cooling fluid. But the cold water that runs through 35 kilometres of underground pipes is also used to feed the building’s heating.
9. It has the largest mechanical organ in the world.
The Big Organ in the Concert Hall is considered the largest mechanical organ in the world and took 10 years to build. To get an idea of its size, we can tell you that it is made up of 10,154 pipes. This organ is often used for musical performances, but also to provide music for plays.
10. The first unofficial performance at the Opera was in 1960.
Although there have been many shows that the Sydney Opera House has seen, the first musical performance held at the Sydney Opera House was held in 1960 and the one who did it was Paul Robeson. The singer visited the workers during construction and by climbing the scaffolding of the building, he entertained the workers while they had lunch.
11. The visit to the Sydney Opera House is free for all visitors.
An interesting fact that visitors will surely love is that the Sydney Opera House allows visitors to enter its facilities for free. But it also gives them the chance to explore the building for as long as they want. The mere fact that access is free means that many come to see this famous building and that in addition to a photo, they can enjoy a day of culture.
However, for more information about its visit, it also offers paid guided tours, which allow you to immerse yourself in the history and details behind the making of this famous opera.
12. Is it very big?
The Sydney Opera House is 187 meters long and 120 meters wide, making it much larger in size than a football field. The entire building covers an area of 5,798 hectares of land, a space in which 8 Boeing 747 aircraft could be placed wing to wing.
13. What is the largest recorded crowd to attend a performance at the Sydney Opera House?
The largest concert in terms of attendance held at the Sydney Opera House was held in 1996. This honour goes to a Melbourne-based band called Crowded House, which performed a farewell concert estimated to be attended by around 250,000 people, which makes it the largest total audience ever to attend the Sydney Opera House.
ALFA