Estimated reading time: 0 minutes
The Grand Theatre and National Opera in Warsaw was opened 190 years ago, on February 24. The opening ceremony included the presentation of the opera “The Barber of Seville” by Gioacchino Rossini. It shares its venue with two other cultural must-see places in Poland. Read about The Grand Theatre, the Poland’s National Opera, and the National Theatre in Warsaw.
“The Grand Theatre, originally planned as the new seat of the National Theatre, began operating at Marywilski Square on February 24, 1833. The foundation stone was laid 8 years earlier, on the 60th anniversary of the premiere of Józef Bielawski’s comedy The Interlopers (Natręci) based on a play by Molière, regarded as the birth of the National Theatre.”
The Grand Theatre in Warsaw was built on Theater Square between 1825 and 1833, replacing the former building of Marywil, from Polish classicist designs by the Italian architect Antonio Corazzi of Livorno, to provide a new performance venue for existing opera, ballet, and drama companies active in Warsaw. The building was remodeled several times and, in the period of Poland’s political eclipse from 1795 to 1918, it performed an important cultural and political role in producing many works by Polish composers and choreographers.
The Grand Theatre complex at the Theatre Square in Warsaw with another national venue, the Poland’s National Opera.
“Opera was brought to Poland just thirty years after it first appeared in Florence, by Royal Prince Ladislaus IV Vasa. In 1628 he invited the first Italian opera troupe to Warsaw.For over 170 years the Teatr Wielki has been Poland’s grandest opera and ballet theatre. It was built in 1825–1833 to a design by the Italian architect Antonio Corazzi of Livorno.The building was converted several times. It was bombed during the siege of Warsaw in 1939 and almost completely ruined. Only the original classicist façade survived.”
The Grand Theatre and the National Theatre
“During World War II, the theater was almost completely ruined. The National Theater was reopened in 1949, and the Grand Theater – only in 1965. Today, there is no bad blood between the Grand Theatre and National Opera, and the National Theatre and they are autonomous institutions that jointly occupy the Corazza complex at the former Marywilski Square in Warsaw.”