Civic Opera Building: the Throne on the River
If you're fortunate enough to take an architectural tour down the Chicago River, one of the most memorable buildings is the Civic Opera Building (a.k.a. Civic Opera House). Across the River from the Riverside Plaza and across the street from the UBS Tower, this limestone skyscraper is shaped like a gigantic armchair facing the River, with a 45-story office tower 'back,' two 22-story 'arms,' and a 12-story 'seat' which is the opera house itself. It opened on November 4, 1929, just six days after the stock market crash.
Samuel Insull, 'the Prince of Electricity,' was head of Commonwealth Edison and the president of the Chicago Civic Opera Association. He hired a design team to create a new home for the Chicago Civic Opera, which was then residing at Louis Sullivan's Auditorium Building. Upon completion, the building's opera house glittered and dazzled with crystal chandeliers, elaborate ceilings, 40-foot-high columns, and a grand double staircase that led to 31 boxes (purposely set farther back than most opera houses). The opera house holds 3,563 seats for the Lyric Opera of Chicago, making it the second-largest opera hall in North America.1 (The largest is Metropolitan Opera House in New York City.) Rumor has it that the building's throne-shape was intentional. Here, Insull's daughter could sit as star of the opera with her back to New York City. (She had been rejected by the Metropolitan Opera.)
In 1993, Lyric Opera of Chicago purchased the theatre and backstage space and began an extensive renovation. Outdated riggings and lighting were replaced; electrical and mechanical systems were updated; and new heating and air conditioning systems were installed. Every single one of the 3,563 seats were removed and refurbished. The entire theatre was completely repainted'the first time since its opening. Thirty painters hand-stenciled and hand-detailed the ceilings' ornamentation. In the end, the entire project took three years and cost $100 million.2
Given the talent and magnificence of the performances here, every seat in this 'throne' is the best seat in the house.
Photo credit: (c/o Flickr) msalmi78, mason.flickr, meironke, joshbousel, darajan (1, 2)
Civic Opera Building: 20 N Wacker Dr
Public trans: Bus # 14, 20, X20, 38, 56, 60, 124, 125, 127, 157
Brown/Pink/Purple/Orange Line train (Washington)
http://www.lyricopera.org/
1 Civic Opera House (Chicago). (2008). Retrieved September 21, 2008 from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Web site: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civic_Opera_House_(Chicago)
2 About the Opera House. (n.d.). Retrieved September 21, 2008 from Lyric Opera of Chicago Web site: http://www.lyricopera.org/about/house.asp
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