EFE.- The Paris Opera tomorrow commemorates the 150th anniversary of the inauguration of the Palais Garnier, its majestic headquarters in the ninth arrondissement of the French capital, at a time of difficulties for the institution due to its extensive renovation needs amid financial difficulties.
Conceived by Charles Garnier under the auspices of Napoleon III, who had just suffered an attack on the Le Peletier opera house by Italian republicans, the building – declared a historical monument in 1923 – mixes classical, baroque and Renaissance influences.
Garnier was a barely known architect at the time, aged 35, but his theater project with two entrances (one for subscribers and one for the emperor) and with capacity for 2,000 spectators was unanimously chosen.
The imposing façade of the building arrives dull for this 150th anniversary, as a tarp and scaffolding have kept it covered for months due to repairs that will last beyond 2025.
That has not prevented visits to its public areas, which amount to one million each year, nor the performances, which attract some 350,000 spectators annually.
The Palais Garnier is the most prestigious stage of the Paris Opera – which has another large and more modern theater in the Place de la Bastille – and the ceiling of its large auditorium is famous for the paintings made by Marc Chagall in the sixties, at the request of the then culture minister, André Malraux.
That work covered the original ceiling, which remains intact below, signed by Jules-Eugène Lenepveu and with 63 figures representing beauty, music and the muses with the hours of day and night.
The stage is 48 meters wide, 60 meters high and 27 meters deep, and not only have legendary figures passed through it, such as the soprano Maria Callas, but it has also been a place of inspiration for artists, such as Gastón Leroux, author of the novel ‘The Phantom of the Opera’ (1910).
A rich program for the anniversary
Although the 150th anniversary will be celebrated tomorrow, since the official inauguration of the Palais Garnier took place on January 5, 1875 after just over a decade of construction and already with the Third Republic, the Opera is preparing an entire 2025 of celebrations that will have their first main course with a special gala on January 24.
It will be inspired by the programming of the 1875 opening and all the artists and students of the Opera schools – musicians, singers and dancers – will participate, under the musical direction of Thomas Hengelbrock and the staging of Victoria Sitjà.
It will also feature guest artists such as the Peruvian tenor Juan Diego Flórez.
A few days before, on January 17, there will be a concert dedicated to Georges Bizet and his contemporaries, which has been commissioned by artists who do their residency at the opera.
In May there will be another special anniversary event, a Rolex ambassador concert featuring the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, and the shows will also be complemented by an exhibition at the National Library, special meetings and visits for the public, among other initiatives.
And apart from that, of course, the programming for the current season will continue to be developed.
Restorations and financial difficulties
Despite the celebrations, the anniversary of the Palais Garnier comes in a context of difficulties and with a horizon that will require extensive closures for renovations, until 2030, in all the venues of the Paris Opera.
The reform needs are estimated at 200 million euros, according to an audit published last October.
This study also revealed a difficult global financial situation, with a very large increase in production costs in recent years, which have coincided with crises such as the covid-19 pandemic.
During last December, in addition, the ballet’s scheduled shows were affected by a strike already suspended by the dancers, who demanded improvements in their working conditions and denounced a chronic lack of financing.
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