London’s Royal Opera House Completes £50M Renovation

AFTER three years of renovation, construction work wrapped-up this month on London’s Royal Opera House (ROH).

Part of the wider "Open Up" programme, the renovation sought to make opera and ballet more accessible to the wider public.

Stanton Williams, a London-based architecture practice, won a competition to redesign the venue in 2012 with this goal in mind.

Above: The renovation of London's Royal Opera House included the addition of a new glazed ground floor entrance (image courtesy of Stanton Williams).

The £50.7 million refurbishment - funded entirely by private donations - involved the creation of a new, glazed entrance hall, enlarging the ROH's foyer and a renovation of the 400-seat Linbury Studio Theatre (now called Linbury Theatre).

Above and Below: Inside, works included renovating the 400-seat Linbury theatre and creating a new, light-filled foyer (image courtesy of Stanton Williams).

Enlarged bathrooms and a large restaurant have been added to the complex, while a number of existing public spaces have been refurbished.

Above: ROH's new, publicly accessible restaurant (image courtesy of Stanton Williams).

The works were carried out with minimal disruption to the ROH's 2,256-capacity main stage built in 1858, which hosts around 900 performances every year.