Royal Opera House to let everyone in on the act at its revamped home

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The multi-million-pound refurbishment of the Royal Opera House will have a “Tate Modern” effect on the world of ballet and opera, according to its chief executive.

Alex Beard, who was part of the team which built the landmark contemporary art gallery, said the work at Covent Garden, which began in 2015, will show people “for the first time the really clear view that there is a theatre here”.

Among the improvements are a large digital screen at the entrance which will broadcast live and pre-recorded footage of performances and rehearsals, a new entrance, shop, cafe and restaurant which will be open to the public.

New pictures, created as part of the project and never seen before today, show how the building will look when it opens its doors in September. They reveal public spaces inside and a detailed view of the building from Bow Street.

Mr Beard said: “I think that having a window on the institution and having a direct relationship with the street will be a powerful metaphor in the same way that Tate Modern’s relationship with its public is influenced by the fact you have a ramp going down into that extraordinary space, rather than steps going up into a portico. I think in the same way the opera house’s relationship with this city and with the street will change.”

Four projectors will beam specially made films on to the interior walls on the ground floor to explain to visitors the work that goes on in the building.

New perspectives: The new inside space at Royal Opera House
Stanton Williams

Mr Beard said: “They can bring to life the journey between backstage and front of house, so if you can imagine, we might have a close-up of someone stitching a pointe shoe, then a pirouette on stage.” Other plans include free lunchtime concerts, more treasures from its archive going on display and the creation of “a winter garden” by enclosing and glazing a large section of the terraces overlooking Covent Garden.

Mr Beard said he wanted to make the building, which is home to the Royal Ballet and the Royal Opera companies, a “public meeting space”. He said: “The idea is this is open all day, every day, for people to come here and enjoy whether they have got a ticket or not.”

The smaller Linbury Theatre has been remade, with 400 new seats arranged in a horseshoe shape, while the Clore Studio has been upgraded with new technology. Mr Beard said: “We will be able to stream stuff much more easily and effectively and for us it’s super-important because for each show we put on we have a series of talks where the creative team will give an insight into their ideas.

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“You might have a principal ballerina giving a masterclass or the Royal Opera’s music director, Tony Pappano, putting youngsters through their paces in the young artists’ programme, and that is of interest not just to the 130 people in the Clore Studio, but to audiences all over the world.”

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