Hanoi Opera House

Here is some irony in the Hanoi Opera House being located at the August Revolution Square. The complex’s design bears a heavy influence of the French neo-classical architectural style under the Renaissance Period. It has an ornate exterior manifested in shuttered windows, wrought iron balconies that overlook the city center.

Photo by Nicolas Lannuzel

Nowadays, Hanoi Opera House has been a venue for those who are into traditional music, theatrical performance and, sometimes, contemporary Vietnamese music and in a wider sense, a tourist attraction for foreign and local visitors.

However, the initial purpose of the building was to cater for French officials and wealthy Vietnamese people back in the early 20th century.  1940 was the landmark of Hanoi Opera House since it became more familiar to the masses of Hanoi. Hanoi Opera House’s construction was begun in 1901, accomplished in 1911 by the French but not until 1940, some Vietnam performance group started to rent the ‘Western theater’ to host their performances.

The 900-seat opera house is well-equipped with the state-of-art appliances and facilities that are compatible for all genre of artistic performance, ranging from folk music, Vietnamese drama and operetta to classical and reformed opera. People don’t just come to Hanoi Opera House to appreciate fine music in large-scale international concerts. Some significant parts of Vietnamese History took place under the roof of this grandiose structure. The first meeting of the National Assembly of Vietnam Democratic Republic was held here in 1946.

In 1995, the structure underwent the Vietnamese government’s restoration in its effort of preparation for the Summit of Francophone to be held in 1998. Thanks to the process, the oh-so-French building have now somehow acquired more Vietnamese Psyche and become a cultural center of the country and an architectural highlight in Southeast Asia. The building is worth visiting and very convenient to arrive from the Old Quarter, just takes you some five minutes to walk there.

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