Grand Théâtre de Genève

Grand Théâtre de Genève is an opera house in Geneva, Switzerland.

As with many other opera houses, the Grand Théâtre de Genève is both a venue and an institution. The venue is a majestic building, towering over Place Neuve, officially opened in 1876, partly destroyed by fire in 1951 and reopened in 1962, after extensive refurbishments, which houses the largest stage in Switzerland. As an institution, it is the largest production and host theatre in French-speaking Switzerland, featuring opera and dance performances, recitals, concerts and, occasionally, theatre.

During the 17th and early 18th centuries, Geneva was heavily influenced by Calvinist orthodoxy and it was not until the middle 1760s that the city agreed to the building of the Théâtre de Rosimond, Geneva's first opera house. Under the influence of Voltaire opera began to flourish at La Grange aux Etrangers and its successor theatre, the Théâtre de Neuve, both of which were located outside the walls of the city.

After a long period of uninterrupted activity, the Théâtre de Neuve was pulled down in 1880 to be replaced by a new theatre, better suited to the quality and space needed by Geneva's growing population. As early as 1862, the Municipal Council had decided that the theatre was too small and plain, in view of Geneva's increasing importance and prestige. In 1870, an invitation for proposals was launched, and the project was handed to architects Emile Reverdin and Gaspard André. Funds for the new theatre project were provided by Duke Charles of Brunswick's legacy to the city in 1873, out of which CHF 1.2 million were earmarked to build Geneva's future temple of operatic art. The municipal government voted to begin construction of the new theatre in 1874, on a 3,000 square metre plot granted by the State of Geneva and formerly occupied by the moats of the ancient city wall, according to plans drawn up by the architect Jacques-Élysée Goss.

The first stone was laid in 1875, and the official inauguration took place in 1879 with a performance of Rossini's William Tell opening the season. The new building, placed between the Musée Rath and the Conservatory of Music, was rated among the ten best opera houses in Europe, close behind the recently completed Palais Garnier in Paris, from which it drew considerable architectural inspiration, in its Second Empire style.

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