Beijing - China
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Thursday 29 july 2010

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Beijing - China

The China National Grand Theatre, a very controversial building

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With a planned opening in 2005, the construction of the exterior of the China National Grand Theatre was finally finished two years behind schedule. The imposing building lies in the very heart of Beijing. We went to take a look before the official opening.

You'll either love it or hate it. It's clear that the China National Grand Theatre in Beijing leaves no one indifferent on the issue. After five years of construction, "The Eggshell" or "The Bright Pearl" as its critics called it, was first unveiled on June 15^th this year, complete with twenty thousand titanium panels and twelve thousand sheets of glass, right in the heart of Chinese capital, just to the west of the Great Hall of the People (Tiananmen Square). The Theatre cost in excess of 2.9 billion RMB (US$390 million).

The Grand Theatre covers an area of 149,520 square metres, consisting of the main theatre surrounded by water, and connected to the North and the South via underwater passageways. There is also an underground car park. This oval-shaped building contrasts greatly with the rigidity and harshness of surrounding buildings around Tiananmen Square. This decision was well-thought out by Paul Andreu, the Theatre's French architect, who has also designed Charles de Gaulle Airport Terminal 2E in Paris and Shanghai-Pudong Airport. "I chose an oval shape because it's a natural shape without straight lines traditionally associated with buildings of this calibre. I designed a very smooth roof which interferes neither with the sky, nor the People's Congress Building," Andreu explained to CCTV, China's official TV station.

The Grand Theatre complex also has an artificial lake and green spaces in an effort to improve the local environment, and infuse the area with a little nature. "I wanted my creation to be set on the water, like an island, a dreamy place, an untouchable building," he explains. And he has succeeded. The only way to reach the Theatre is via an eighty metre long glass tunnel running under the lake.

Light and darkness

Once inside, it is easy to get lost in the maze of wood and glass where light and darkness play hide and seek. The main hall is decorated with a huge array of flowers surrounded with a white fence, which brings little aesthetic value to the architect's original plans. Exhibitions of Chinese traditional arts like Beijing Opera and Shadow performances are also on show, along with shiny gold sculptures and leather puppets. One problem for foreign visitors is that the captions are only in Chinese.

China National Grand Theatre - Beijing On the day of the report, big colourful boards showing pictures of famous Chinese artists which had been placed all around the theatre were the last remains of the twenty three experimental and private performances from between September 25^th and October 13^th to celebrate the 58^th Anniversary of the People's Republic of China and the opening of the 17^th People's Congress. The lifts and escalators which connect the 3 floors in the main building were still out of order, as is the cafeteria on the ground floor whose chrome counter, tables and stools are waiting for customers.

On that day, it isn't possible to experience the central Opera House and its 2,146 seats spread over three steep balconies, designed in such a way that everyone in the audience has a perfect view of the stage. Nor is it possible to admire the 1,040 seat Theatre located on the West Wing with its twenty six metre wide and twenty metre deep stage. The doors are locked.

China National Grand Theatre - Beijing The concert hall is a room of contrasts, with a beautiful mix of red and plane coloured wood. Its 2,017 seats are still wrapped in white paper. But one can't help but be impressed by the amazing beauty emanating from the enormous organ sitting on the stage, large enough to seat a 120 member harmonic orchestra.

The seats behind the stage can also be lowered to allow a choir of up to 180 people on. The sound system is state-of-the-art. "Everything has been designed and implemented so that the music and choir can be heard throughout the concert hall," explains Andreu to the People Daily on line.

Whilst still closed to the public, the National Grand Theater will be officially opened by the end of the year, once the many tests on the sound and lighting systems have been completed. Some 183 performances from China, the United-States, Russia, France and other countries are scheduled to be shown by the end of March 2008.