Opéra national de Montpellier, Opera house in Place de la Comédie, Montpellier, France
The Opéra national de Montpellier is an opera house at the heart of the city, with a neoclassical facade of columns and ornamental details that defines the main square. Inside, there is a large Italian-style auditorium and a smaller concert hall used for chamber performances.
A first theatre by Jacques Philippe Mareschal opened on 22 December 1755 with Rebel and Francœur's Pyrame et Thisbé. Fires damaged it in 1785 and 1789, and the building was destroyed on the night of 5–6 April 1881. The present Opéra Comédie, designed by Joseph-Marie Cassien-Bernard, a pupil of Charles Garnier, opened in 1888; it has been listed as a historic monument since 2020.
The opera house sits on the Place de la Comédie, the main square of the city and a meeting point for daily life for centuries. The program today covers a wide range, from classical ballet to contemporary productions, drawing audiences from all over the region.
The venue offers guided tours that allow visitors to see the architecture and backstage areas up close. Booking in advance is advisable, as tour slots fill up quickly and capacity is limited.
This opera house is one of the largest Italian-style theaters in France outside Paris, second in size only to the one in Bordeaux. That scale reflects how seriously cities in southern France took the construction of their public cultural buildings in the 18th century.
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