Hungarian State Opera House
City: Budapest
Area: District 6. City Center
Phone: 353 0170
They say that if the crown of Andrássy út is Heroes’ Square, then the Opera must be its wedding ring. The Neo-Renaissance building of the State Opera House was designed by Miklós Ybl, built between 1875 and 1884. Its auditorium seats 1289 people.
The first performances ever held here were the Lohengrin and Bánk Bán. The electric lights system in the building has been in place since 1895. To the right from the carriage entrance stands the statue of Franz Liszt, and on the left is one of Ferenc Erkel, the father of Hungarian opera. There are four separate sections in the Opera House: the reception area, the auditorium, the stage and the technical area. The entrance of the building is guarded by the statues of Ferenc Liszt and Ferenc Erkel, both the works of Alajos Stróbl. The ceiling of the auditorium is decorated by frescoes by Károly Lotz, and the reception area has Árpád Feszty's pictures. The box office is in the Western side of the building, with brass railings forcing the patrons in a snake-like line. The Opera can be visited on a guided tour as well.
