This is one of my favourite places beacuse when I enter this building I know that all lifes worries are left on the doorstep I am entering a building that is going to present me with the best of talents that are on offer in the world today.

HISTORY OF THE HOUSE

The Royal Opera House is situated in London's Covent Garden it first opened it's doors in December 1732. This site has been the home of three differnent theatres. the first was mainly a playhouse. The first serious music to be performed here were operas by Handel who played here from 1735 to his death in 1759. He left his organ to the theatre when he died but sadly this was destroyed by a fire in 1808. Is that not a tragedy?

The theatre was then rebuilt and it opened it's doors in 1809 again it was not just for the performances of Ballet and Opera, the exclusive rights of these performances had been given to Her Majesty's Theatre, Haymarket but due to a big dispute between the management and Michael Costa the conductor at Her Majesty's, he transferred his allegiance to Covent Garden in 1846.
Fire struck the theatre again in 1856, the theatre was again rebuilt with the building that we all know today. The theatre became the Royal Opera House in 1892.

During the first world war the Opera house became a furniture repository and during the second world war it became a dance hall, there were worries that it would stay a dance hall but the famous music publishers Boosey and Hawkes acquired the lease of the building. David Webster was appointed General Administrator and Sadler's Wells Ballet was invited to become the resident ballet company. This ballet company eventually became the Royal ballet. Today members of our Royal Ballet are the best the world has to offer, all artists want to perform at The ROH

In 1946 the house gave it's first performance of Ballet and the music director started to build a resident music company, 1947 and the first opera was performed. The Royal Ballet and The Royal Opera were granted Royal Charters in 1956 for The Royal ballet and 1968 for The Royal Opera and that takes us to the present day.

In 1975 the Labour government gave land adjacent to the Royal Opera House for a long overdue modernisation, refurbishment and extension. This was on the understanding that NO government funds would be made available for the redevelopment itself. The cost of the refurbishment was to cost £220 million. A successful application to the National Lottery for funds provided £78 million towards the refurbishment.

By 1995, sufficient funds had been raised by The Opera House to enable the company to embark upon a major reconstruction of the building. The Opera House closed it's doors.between1996 and 2000. This reconstruction involved the demolition of almost the whole site except for the auditorium, several adjacent buildings were also demolished to make room for a major increase in the overall scale of the complex. . The new venue has the same traditional horseshoe shaped auditorium as before, but greatly improved technical, rehearsal, offices and educational facilities, a new studio theatre called the Linbury Theatre was also included.

THE HOUSE TODAY

Today newly refurbished the ROH is a most beautiful building, you can enter either through the main entrance in Bow street or the back entrance which is entered from the Covent Garden piazza. it is here you will find the shop and booking desks. The result of the new works is a building of outstanding beauty and a Company that is producing opera and ballet to the highest international standards. The ROH is no longer only an opera house where one attends evening performances but is a building to visit, walk around, use and enjoy at any time.
After having your tickets checked you climb the stairs or you may take the lift to the Vilar Floral Hall, which was the old fruit and flower market of Covent Garden. This is a breathtaking room of huge proportions, the enormous shaped glass ceilings are really inspiring and here you can enjoy a drink or a meal in the Vilar Hall Restaraunt.There is a champagne bar in the centre of the room or a regular bar serving both alcohol and light refreshments at the end, The ROH is open during the day from 10am to 3.30pm. Visitors are able to go into the Vilar Floral Hall and view the Crush Room and permanent displays and temporary exhibitions sited around the building..You can then take the huge escalators to the Ampitheatre and roof terrace The ROH Cafe is open on the Amphitheatre level from 10am -3.30pm for morning coffee and light lunches. The Ampitheatre has a fabulous glass window that gives you a wonderful view over the floral hall. The roof terrace again offers a seating area or you can just stand and admire the view over London and directly down into the Piazza.

The ROH has 2156 seats and all areas of seating are clearly marked, there are plenty of inhouse staff around to help you with any help you may need finding your seat etc.

The horseshoe shaped theatre has again been beautifully restored with attention to detail being observed. It is fully air conditioned and the seats are comfortabl it also has a fabulous aura about it, you can feel all that has gone on here in years gone by, all the great artists that have performed on the stage have left a little of themselves behind. The sound quality of this theatre is second to none. The orchestra pit is in front of the stage and if your watching opera the subtitle matrix is dispalyed clearly for all to read.

I have always found that performances start very promptly. For performances in the main auditorium the Royal Opera House opens an hour and a half before curtain up for ticket holders..Auditorium doors will open up to an hour before curtain up. The inhouse staff walk around with handbells in the ampitheatre to inform you of the performance start and a buzzer sounds in other areas warning you of ten minutes to find your seats.

The ROH has 5 different bars for your enjoyment and 3 restaurants. The restaraunts normally need prior booking.

TICKETS FOR PERFORMANCES

Tickets for performances can be bought well in advance, the performances are usually advertised in blocks of 4 or 5 and tickets from those performances will go on sale at one time.
Tickets which are unsold four hours before a performance may be made available at half-price to everyone. 67 seats are sold from 10am on the day of the performance to personal callers at the Box Office (one ticket per person)

Tickets may also be offered to those on Income Support, ES40 holders, members of the ROH Access List and those in receipt of benefits due to disability, under-18s, students, Westminster ResCard-holders, Registered Disabled, WC2 residents and Senior Citizens on Income Support at £12.50 for ballet and £15 for opera.

Booked Ticket prices vary on the performance opera being more expensive than ballet, this is due to the enormous cast( 100's) and extensive stage sets.For Opera they vary between the highest priced at around £150 and the lowest priced are £4.00
For the Ballet the highest priced are around £80.00 and the lowest are £4.00. There are many choices and prices of tickets available. When I was a student nurse in London I used to buy tickets for 75p, Okay your not at the front but you can see the performance well enough for real enjoyment, I enjoy watching ballet higher up as I like to look down on the whole stage to see the complete picture.I have never bought any huge priced tickets and I have never seen one bad performance or had a performance ruined due to my seat.

The dress code here is not as strict as you may think, no longer do you see everybody in evening suit and long dresses, it really does vary from Jeans and trainers to some fabulous outfits. Anything goes as this house is for everybody. The only time I have been told the dress code is when it is a Royal performance attended by the queen and even then it is more casual if you are not sitting around the Royal Box.

DISABLED ACCESS

Disabled access is good at The ROH and they cater for all needs and all disabilities. Talking cassettes are available free with cast list and performance synopsis, Large print printed sheets are also available free of charge for partially sighted.

Assistance dogs are welcome in all spaces of the Royal Opera House. If you would like your dog to remain with you during the performance, please mention this when booking your seats to ensure you are given a seat with enough space. If you prefer, you may leave your dog with a member of staff during the performance.

A Brahler infra-red assisted-hearing facility is available in the main auditorium and the Linbury Studio Theatre. The system enhances sound by using the prescribed headset or induction collar these are also available free of charge.

Wheelchair space is also available for all performances but do mention in advance when booking your tickets. There are more than 100 seats available without having to use lifts or stairs if you prefer.Wheelchairs can also be borrowed from ROH.

There is nobody that is not welcome at The ROH.

Backstage tours are available of the Royal Opera House and these offer a unique glimpse behind the scenes of one of the busiest international opera houses in the world.The tours run up to three times per day, Mon - Sat, at 10.30am 12.30pm and 2.30pm and take between 1h 15mins and 1h 30mins.The cost is £8 per ticket (concessions: £7.

Each year the department works with around 93,000 people of all ages, backgrounds and geographical locations. Although the department's primary commitment is towards people as yet uninterested in ballet and opera, it also focuses on working with more knowledgeable audiences.

Weekly dance classes are held for visually impaired adults. Since then, the ROH has made a regular commitment to provide a rehearsal space, workshop leader and an accompanist, these classes are free of charge. These classes are suitable for complete beginners as well as people with some dance experience.
Classes are free and held every Monday from 6.30pm-8pm.

The ROH is very interested in Education and placements are available for all ages in many areas of the house. I recommend you contact them if you are interested.

During the summer season July and August The ROH hands over it's space to some of the worlds greatest companies. This year it is the Kirov Ballet and Opera, previous years have been The Bolshoi Ballet and San Francisco Ballet.

GETTING THERE

Underground:
Covent Garden tube station on the Piccadilly Line

Buses:
1, 4, 6, 9, 11, 13, 15, 23, 26, 68, 76, 77a, 91, 168, 171, 176, 188, 501 (southbound only), 505, 521, X68 all go to the Aldwych, which is close to the Theatre.

Parking
There is no designated parking at the Royal Opera House for ticket holders. The nearest NCP car parks are five minutes' walk away at Drury Lane and Shelton Street.

There is a drop-off point outside the Bow Street entrance. A limited number of orange badge bays are available in the vicinity, but are not reserved for the use of Royal Opera House patrons.

ADDRESS

Royal Opera House
Covent Garden
London WC2E 9DD

BOOKING OFFICE AND INFORMATION LINE 020 7304 4000

MINICOM LINE 020 7212 9228

Travelex £10 Student Standbys are any unsold tickets for performances by The Royal Ballet and The Royal Opera which are made available to students over the internet a minimum of 24 hours in advance.

The Travelex £10 Student Standbys are available to any students who register for the scheme and who have a valid Student Identification Card.

LINDA'S ADDED EXTRA

The Royal Opera House is a house that has had a lot of negative comments written about it in recent years due to the fact that "bourgeois" entertainment should NOT be helped with public money from the lottery fund. I really do object to this term "bourgeois" being used to describe people like me who just enjoy the arts. I am not "bourgeois" I just have a great appreciation and enjoyment of exceptional talent. What is so wrong with enjoying the Arts, maybe if this country educated it's children on the Arts then the beauty of what a human body can achieve may be appreciated instead of sneered at.. You do not need to be of any particular class to enjoy The ROH. This is a building that was worth restoring at a cost of 220 million. it's beautiful, it is our history, it will now be there for future generations to enjoy and more than that it is available to you all to enjoy today. The House is the permenant home of the Royal Ballet and Royal Opera and we are blessed with having some of the worlds greatest dancers and artists all performing for us here. If your in London and maybe fancy seeing something different from your usual entertainment why not go and see a performance, I know you will feel differently when you leave. I hope maybe I have managed to show you a little of The real ROH.

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