Kiev National Academic Theater of Opera and Ballet

Kiev Opera House is one of the most beautiful buildings of neo Renaissance constructions of Kiev architectural suite, combining sounding of many epochs and centuries- from golden-domed temples of Kievan Rus to the rhythm of modern buildings of the beginning of the 20^th century.

Postcard (1966).

History of the Kiev Opera House goes back to the early 20 th century. In 1901, the place where in 1896 burned down the town theater, was a new building of the Kiev Opera. After the terrible fire, city officials held an international contest, which were presented projects for the construction of the building of the opera in Kiev. It was attended by over 20 architects, not only in Ukraine but also from Russia, France, Germany and Italy. The winner of the contest was Viktor Schreter - Professor of Architecture from St. Petersburg. At that time there was the largest opera stage in tsarist Russia. The diminutions were like that- the width of stage was 34,3 m, the depth of stage was 17,2 m, the height of stage was 22,7 m.    In those days, the Kiev Opera House really hit its grandeur and beauty. Here there were stalls, an amphitheater, second floor, and as much as 4 tiers. The building of this size could accommodate just 1,650 spectators. The main materials were velvet interior and bronze. Luxurious armchairs, elegant chandeliers and lamps were taken straight out of Vienna. The total area of the opera house was almost 100,000 cubic meters.

The October Revolution of 1917 provided great opportunities for the development of the theater. The theater was renamed the K. Liebknecht State Opera Theater in 1919 and the Kiev State Academic Ukrainian Opera in 1926. All operas were sung in Ukrainian. The theater assumed its present name in 1934 and was named in honor of T. G. Shevchenko in 1939.

            Postcard (1970)

            Postcard (1970)

General reconstruction of the theater building was carried out in 1983-1988 years. Shelling and   a direct hit bombs during the Second World War severely damaged the building. Now the total area of the stage is 824 square meters. During the renovation a new organ was made by Rieger-Clos Czech company.