The iceberg flanking the waters of the Bay of Oslo - it is most accurate to describe the youngest, but already one of the most notable sights of the Norwegian capital - the magnificent building of the Opera House. Part of the bold plan to re-equip the shoreline, Opera Oslo opened in 2008 and immediately won the love of tourists thanks to its futuristic but pleasing eye architecture, the mass of interesting "chips" inside and, last but not least, grand opera and ballet performances.

A bit of history

The large-scale project to transform Oslo into a world-class cultural capital began to be implemented since 2006, and the first swallow of the field of progress was the construction of a state-of-the-art Opera Theater, instantly on par with such masterpieces as the Sydney opera and the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao. The project was designed by Norwegian architects and cost about 500 million euros - but these costs pay off with a vengeance: today a visit to Oslo can not be imagined without an inspection of his outstanding opera.

What to see

The Opera House at first does not seem as large as it really is, thanks to the modest size of the facade and not very prominent entrance. But give him time - and the building will unfold before you in all its glory. Inspection of the Opera Oslo should start - do not be surprised - from the roof. This is a real carpet-plane with a mass of streamlined corners and spacious flat surfaces. Practical and laid-back Norwegians use the roof for the most direct and logical purpose: sunbathe on it in the warm summer days

From the roof it is worth to look at the 3D version of the canvas by Caspar David Friedrich "Ice Sea" - the sculpture is located right in the water, offshore line, it is mobile and reacts vividly to any movement of waves, appearing to the viewer every time different.

The spacious foyer of the Opera is filled with sunlight thanks to windows of 15-meter height, and in its depth there is one more notion of architects - St on-wave, made of processed wafers beautiful golden oak. Its function is to hide the staircase to the upper floors of the building and visually separate the huge space of the foyer. And opposite the Wave Wall there is a cloakroom and latrines skillfully disguised by the play of greenish gleams

Excursions through the Opera

To sense and feel the Opera of Oslo, it makes sense to join an organized excursion. A local guide will tour the most interesting of the 1100 rooms of the building, talk about the architects' plan and behind-the-scenes life. Excursions in English are held daily at 14:00 from mid-April to August and at 14:00 on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays in the winter season. The cost of the excursion is 100 NOK.

Address and opening hours

Address : Kirsten Flagstads plass, 1.

Opening Hours: The lobby is open from 10:00 to 23:00 from Monday to Friday; from 11:00 to 23:00 on Saturday and from 12:00 to 22:00 on Sunday. The entrance to the foyer is free

Opera Oslo

Inside the Opera Oslo

Opera Oslo at night