Even if they don’t know its name, its purpose, or its location, most people can see a picture of the Sydney Opera House and instantly recognize it as familiar. It is near the top of the list with other buildings such as the Empire State Building, Big Ben, and the Eiffel Tower as the most iconic structures in the world. However, even icons need some sprucing up now and again, and over the next four years, the Sydney Opera House is going to undergo some major renovations and upgrades.
Before anyone freaks out, rest assured, the roof of the building, its most iconic aspect, which resembles a grouping of sails or a stegosaurus’s back, will remain unchanged.
The Opera House renovations are expected to cost around $200 million. $150 million of that total will go towards upgrading the concert hall alone.
That may seem like a pretty hefty price tag for renovating an iconic, functioning building, but considering the Opera House generates about $775 million for the Australian economy each year, the improvements not only make sense, but will also be recouped in just a few months’ time. Plus, historically, the Sydney Opera House hasn’t been a structure that has shied away from a large price tag. Originally projected to cost $7 million to construct back in 1973, the total cost ended up at $102 million (according to the Reserve Bank of Australia, that equals $921,400,000 in 2016).
Main Concert Hall. Image Courtesy of Sydney Opera House
The renovation looks to tackle some of the major problems with the structure, such as the poor acoustical design of its main concert hall. Seeing as it is an opera house, bad acoustics are a major problem, one that stems from the very high ceiling being unable to reflect much of the sound coming from the orchestra back down. The solution to this problem is to add a new ceiling with sonic reflectors that will carry the sound much better. Additionally, the stage will be lowered and a new air conditioning system will be installed under the seating area. Construction of the Concert Hall upgrade is scheduled to begin in mid-2019 and take about 18 months to complete.
The Opera House’s second largest internal performance space, The Joan Sutherland Theatre, will also undergo a $45 million facelift and be closed for seven months in 2017.
Other renovations will focus on improving accessibility, efficiency, and flexibility by updating and improving technology and design elements that may have been innovative and trendy back in the early 70s, but are now extremely dated.
A smaller, more efficient cooling system will be installed throughout the building, the old exterior marquee will be removed, and a new entrance and foyer will be connected to an improved car-free entrance under the Monumental Steps to improve building access. New hallways, elevators, and an escalator will also be constructed to make navigating the Opera House simpler.
A new Function Center will be constructed to host social events and existing office space will be transformed into a Creative Learning Center for children.
While the renovations are not expected to finish until 2021, the Opera House will remain open during the project with certain areas closing while they are actively being renovated.
The Opera Houses’s Eminent Architects Panel is involved in the project and ARM Architecture is handling the redesign of the main concert hall.
A rendering of outside the new Function Center. Image Courtesy of Sydney Opera House
Inside the Function Center. Image Courtesy of Sydney Opera House
The Creative Learning Center. Image Courtesy of Sydney Opera House
Northern Foyer. Image Courtesy of Sydney Opera House.
Entry and Foyer. Image Courtesy of Sydney Opera House
Related Stories
| Jun 12, 2014
Austrian university develops 'inflatable' concrete dome method
Constructing a concrete dome is a costly process, but this may change soon. A team from the Vienna University of Technology has developed a method that allows concrete domes to form with the use of air and steel cables instead of expensive, timber supporting structures.
| Jun 9, 2014
Green Building Initiative launches Green Globes for Sustainable Interiors program
The new program focuses exclusively on the sustainable design and construction of interior spaces in nonresidential buildings and can be pursued by both building owners and individual lessees of commercial spaces.
| May 29, 2014
7 cost-effective ways to make U.S. infrastructure more resilient
Moving critical elements to higher ground and designing for longer lifespans are just some of the ways cities and governments can make infrastructure more resilient to natural disasters and climate change, writes Richard Cavallaro, President of Skanska USA Civil.
| May 20, 2014
Kinetic Architecture: New book explores innovations in active façades
The book, co-authored by Arup's Russell Fortmeyer, illustrates the various ways architects, consultants, and engineers approach energy and comfort by manipulating air, water, and light through the layers of passive and active building envelope systems.
| May 19, 2014
What can architects learn from nature’s 3.8 billion years of experience?
In a new report, HOK and Biomimicry 3.8 partnered to study how lessons from the temperate broadleaf forest biome, which houses many of the world’s largest population centers, can inform the design of the built environment.
| May 13, 2014
19 industry groups team to promote resilient planning and building materials
The industry associations, with more than 700,000 members generating almost $1 trillion in GDP, have issued a joint statement on resilience, pushing design and building solutions for disaster mitigation.
| May 11, 2014
Final call for entries: 2014 Giants 300 survey
BD+C's 2014 Giants 300 survey forms are due Wednesday, May 21. Survey results will be published in our July 2014 issue. The annual Giants 300 Report ranks the top AEC firms in commercial construction, by revenue.
| May 2, 2014
World's largest outdoor chandelier tops reworked streetscape for Cleveland's PlayhouseSquare
Streetscape project includes monumental gateway portals, LED signage, and a new plaza, fire pit, sidewalk café, and alfresco dining area.
| Apr 29, 2014
USGBC launches real-time green building data dashboard
The online data visualization resource highlights green building data for each state and Washington, D.C.
| Apr 16, 2014
Upgrading windows: repair, refurbish, or retrofit [AIA course]
Building Teams must focus on a number of key decisions in order to arrive at the optimal solution: repair the windows in place, remove and refurbish them, or opt for full replacement.
