Hungarian State Opera House, Budapest, Hungary

The Budapest opera house is a beautiful Neo-Renaissance building opened in 1884. Construction included the use of marble and frescos by some of the best artisans of that era. Designed by Miklós Ybl, one of Europe's leading architects in the mid to late 19th century, the Budapest Opera House quickly became one of the most prestigious musical institutions in Europe. Many important artists performed here, including Gustav Mahler, who was also the director for three seasons.

The Budapest Opera House is considered to be amongst the best opera houses in the world in terms of its acoustics, and has an auditorium that seats 1200 people. It is horseshoe-shaped and, according to measurements done by a group of international engineers, has the third best acoustics amongst similar European venues (after the Scala in Milan and the Paris Opera House). The statue of Ferenc Erkel stands in front of the Opera House. He was the composer of the Hungarian national anthem and the first music director of the Opera. The other statue in front of the Budapest Opera is of Ferenc Liszt, the well-known Hungarian composer.

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User Reviews

Euforica Lim (2 years ago)
Wow the State Opera is very impressive! It was easy to get the tickets at the ticket booth. We attended an opera instead of the usual tour and it was a great experience. The acoustics in the hall was perfect and the seats were really comfortable.

Joe Macpherson (2 years ago)
Building review only Absolutely gorgeous architecture. The opulence inside is amazing. Very photogenic. The outside is also lovely. Best time is in the evening during golden hour

Desmond Foo (2 years ago)
The Hungarian State Opera house is a place that's not to be missed when visiting Budapest. The concert hall is filled with plenty of ornamental decorations and intricate designs down to the miniscule details. I stood in awe admiring the craftsmanship that went into the construction of this place. Admittedly, I did not appreciate the opera/musical that I was there for, but that's probably due to my own lacking of sophistication.

Hannah Casey (2 years ago)
Really great tour. Guide was knowledgeable and kept things interesting. Great little performance taster towards the end too, before a walk through the main theatre seating and the boxes upstairs. One of the most beautiful opera houses I've seen.

Lola A (2 years ago)
Absolutely gorgeous. I was in awe of how beautiful this place was. Definitely a must see. You're allowed inside for free to look and walk around most of the ground floor. There is also a cute cafe on the grounds.

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Argos Theater

The ancient Argos Theater was built in 320 BC. and is located in Argos, Greece against Larissa Hill. Nearby from this site is Agora, Roman Odeon, and the Baths of Argos. The theater is one of the largest architectural developments in Greece and was renovated in ca 120 AD.

The Hellenistic theater at Argos is cut into the hillside of the Larisa, with 90 steps up a steep incline, forming a narrow rectilinear cavea. Among the largest theaters in Greece, it held about 20,000 spectators and is divided by two landings into three horizontal sections. Staircases further divide the cavea into four cunei, corresponding to the tribes of Argos A high wall was erected to prevent unauthorized access into the theatron and may have helped the acoustics, but it is said the sound quality is still very good today.

Around 120 CE, both theaters were renovated in the Roman style.

Hungarian State Opera House

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