The Solomiya Krushelnytska Lviv State Academic Theatre of Opera and Ballet ( uk, Львівський Національний академічний театр опери та балету імені Соломії Крушельницької) or Lviv Opera ( uk, Львівська оперa, pl, Opera Lwowska) is an

opera house An opera house is a theater (structure), theatre building used for performances of opera. It usually includes a Stage (theatre), stage, an orchestra pit, audience seating, and backstage facilities for costumes and building sets. While some venu ...

located in

Lviv Lviv ( uk, Львів) is the largest city in western Ukraine, and the seventh-largest in Ukraine, with a population of . It serves as the administrative centre of Lviv Oblast and Lviv Raion, and is one of the main cultural centres of Ukra ...

, Ukraine's largest western city and one of both Polish and Ukrainian historic cultural centers. Originally built on former

marsh A marsh is a wetland that is dominated by herbaceous rather than woody plant species.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p Marshes can often be found a ...

land of the submerged Poltva River, the Lviv Opera now located on Freedom Avenue ( uk, Проспект Свободи), the tree-lined centerpiece of Lviv's historic Old City, a

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. I ...

World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for ...

located in the city's Halych district. According to the inscription in the theater lobby, the building was constructed between 1897 and 1900, and has remained standing throughout several changes in history. Originally built when Lviv was the capital of the autonomous province of Galicia in the

Austro-Hungarian Empire Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe#Before World War I, Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with t ...

, the Lviv Opera (german: Lemberger Oper) first stood at the end of Archduke Karl Ludwig Avenue, was later known as the Grand Theatre ( pl, Teatr Wielki) of the

Second Polish Republic The Second Polish Republic, at the time officially known as the Republic of Poland, was a country in Central and Eastern Europe that existed between 1918 and 1939. The state was established on 6 November 1918, before the end of the First World ...

, and during the time of Soviet rule, entering patrons would pass by a towering statue of

Vladimir Lenin Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov. ( 1870 – 21 January 1924), better known as Vladimir Lenin,. was a Russian revolutionary, politician, and political theorist. He served as the first and founding head of government of Soviet Russia from 1917 to 1 ...

. For four decades, the theater was known as the ''

Ivan Franko Ivan Yakovych Franko ( Ukrainian: Іван Якович Франко, pronounced ˈwɑn ˈjɑkowɪtʃ frɐnˈkɔ 27 August 1856 – 28 May 1916) was a Ukrainian poet, writer, social and literary critic, journalist, interpreter, economist, ...

Lviv State Academic Theatre of Opera and Ballet'', having been renamed in 1956 after the city's famous poet and political activist on the centenary of his birth. In 2000, the Lviv Opera celebrated its own

centennial {{other uses, Centennial (disambiguation), Centenary (disambiguation) A centennial, or centenary in British English, is a 100th anniversary or otherwise relates to a century, a period of 100 years. Notable events Notable centennial events at a ...

with another renaming, this time after one of the city's native daughters,

Solomiya Krushelnytska Solomiya Amvrosiivna KrushelnytskaHer name is sometimes spelt as Solomiya Ambrosiyivna Krushelnytska, Salomea Krusceniski, Krushel'nytska or Kruszelnicka. ( uk, Соломія Амвро́сіївна Крушельницька, links=no; Septem ...

, a renowned soprano of the early 20th century.

History

At the end of the 19th century, local leaders felt the need for a large city theatre to be situated in the capital of

Galicia Galicia may refer to: Geographic regions * Galicia (Spain), a region and autonomous community of northwestern Spain ** Gallaecia, a Roman province ** The post-Roman Kingdom of the Suebi, also called the Kingdom of Gallaecia ** The medieval King ...

( uk, Галичина, pl, Galicja). In 1895, the city announced an

architectural design competition An architectural design competition is a type of design competition in which an organization that intends on constructing a new building invites architects to submit design proposals. The winning design is usually chosen by an independent panel ...

, which attracted a large number of submissions.The Lviv Theatre of Opera and Ballet official website. ''History: facts'
History of the building of the theatre
Among the participants were the renowned Viennese architects Fellner & Helmer, whose entry was rejected as too international and eclectic.Philipp Ther. ''Center Stage: Operatic Culture and Nation Building in Nineteenth-Century Central Europe''.

Purdue University Press Purdue University Press, founded in 1960, is a university press that is part of Purdue University. It is a unit of Purdue University Libraries. History An administrative unit of Purdue University Libraries, Purdue University Press has its root ...

. 2014. p. 104.Victor Hugo Lane. ''State culture and national identity in a multi-ethnic context: Lemberg 1772-1914''.

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

. 1999. p. 241. An independent jury chose the design by

Zygmunt Gorgolewski Zygmunt Gorgolewski (14 February 1845 in Solec – 6 July 1903 in Lviv) was a Polish architect, renowned for his construction of the Grand Theatre in Lviv. Jakub Lewiński. ''Między tradycją, a nowoczesnością; Architektura Lwowa lat ...

, Jakub Lewiński. ''Między tradycją, a nowoczesnością; Architektura Lwowa lat 1893-1918''. Neriton. 2005. p. 145. a graduate of the

Berlin Berlin is Capital of Germany, the capital and largest city of Germany, both by area and List of cities in Germany by population, by population. Its more than 3.85 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European U ...

Building Academy and the director of city's Engineering Academy. Gorgolewski pleasantly surprised the jury by planning to locate the building in the center of the city, despite the area having been already densely built-up. In order to solve the space problem, he boldly proposed to enclose the Poltva River underground, and instead of using a traditional foundation, utilized a reinforced concrete base for the first time in Europe. In June 1897, the

cornerstone The cornerstone (or foundation stone or setting stone) is the first stone set in the construction of a masonry foundation. All other stones will be set in reference to this stone, thus determining the position of the entire structure. Over ti ...

was placed. Gorgolewski oversaw

construction Construction is a general term meaning the art and science to form objects, systems, or organizations,"Construction" def. 1.a. 1.b. and 1.c. ''Oxford English Dictionary'' Second Edition on CD-ROM (v. 4.0) Oxford University Press 2009 and ...

, earthwork and design, employing the leading

stonemasons Stonemasonry or stonecraft is the creation of buildings, structures, and sculpture using stone as the primary material. It is one of the oldest activities and professions in human history. Many of the long-lasting, ancient shelters, temples, mo ...

from the city and beyond. Local materials were used wherever possible, however

marble Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite. Marble is typically not foliated (layered), although there are exceptions. In geology, the term ''marble'' refers to metamorpho ...

elements were manufactured in

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

, special linen for painting in the foyer was imported from Belgium. The German company Siemens, ran the electrical wiring and lights, while the hydraulic mechanization of the stage was built by the

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken *Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin screenwr ...

railway workshop company in

Sanok Sanok (in full the Royal Free City of Sanok — pl, Królewskie Wolne Miasto Sanok, rue, Санок, ''Sanok'', ua, Cянік, ''Sianik'', la, Sanocum, yi, סאניק, ''Sonik'') is a town in the Subcarpathian Voivodeship of south-eastern ...

. Construction continued for three years. Funding came from the city, the surrounding communities, and from voluntary donations. The cost of the works totaled 2.4 million Austrian crowns. Stories remain that despite the engineering innovations used by Gorgolewski to construct the foundation of the building, it began to slowly sink because of the Poltva river running underneath it in a tunnel. In July 1903 he died suddenly of paralysis of the aorta of the heart.
Zygmunt Gorgolewski, twórca gmachu Lwowskiego Teatru Wielkiego
' ("Zygmunt Gorgolewski, the creator of the building of the Lwów Grand Theatre"), by Piotr Marek Stański. (in Polish) After some initial settling, the building ceased 'sinking' and remains stable to this day, owing to the innovative design of Gorgolewski. Immediately prior to the

fall of the Soviet Union The dissolution of the Soviet Union, also negatively connoted as rus, Разва́л Сове́тского Сою́за, r=Razvál Sovétskogo Soyúza, ''Ruining of the Soviet Union''. was the process of internal disintegration within the Sov ...

, the first performance of the national anthem of Ukraine, ''

Shche ne vmerla Ukrainy i slava, i volia "" ( uk, Ще не вмерла України і слава, і воля, , lit=The glory and freedom of Ukraine has not yet perished), also known by its official title of "State Anthem of Ukraine" (, ') or by its shortened form "" (, ), is the ...

'', was held at the theatre in 1990, during the last perennial rule of Soviet Ukraine.

Grand opening

The Lviv Opera opened on October 4, 1900. The cultural elite—painters, writers, and composers, as well as delegations from various European theatres—attended the opening festivities. Among the guests attending the ceremony were writer

Henryk Sienkiewicz Henryk Adam Aleksander Pius Sienkiewicz ( , ; 5 May 1846 – 15 November 1916), also known by the pseudonym Litwos (), was a Polish writer, novelist, journalist and Nobel Prize laureate. He is best remembered for his historical novels, espe ...

, composer

Ignacy Jan Paderewski Ignacy Jan Paderewski (; – 29 June 1941) was a Polish pianist and composer who became a spokesman for Polish independence. In 1919, he was the new nation's Prime Minister and foreign minister during which he signed the Treaty of Versail ...

, the painter

Henryk Siemiradzki Henryk Hektor Siemiradzki (24 October 1843 – 23 August 1902) was a Russian-born Polish painter based in Rome, best remembered for his monumental academic art. He was particularly known for his depictions of scenes from the ancient Greek-Roman w ...

,The three were considered the most renowned Polish artists of the epoch the

Chief magistrate Chief magistrate is a public official, executive or judicial, whose office is the highest in its class. Historically, the two different meanings of magistrate have often overlapped and refer to, as the case may be, to a major political and admini ...

of Lviv

Godzimir Małachowski Godzimir Małachowski of Nałęcz (1852–1908) was a Polish lawyer, university professor and President of Lviv. An heir of the powerful Małachowski family, he was also a member of the Austro-Hungarian parliament, the Galicia Diet and one of t ...

, the provincial governor

Leon Piniński Leon Jan Piniński (8 March 1857 – 4 April 1938) was a Polish scholar, diplomat, art historian and politician. A professor of Roman law and one-time rector of the Lwów University (1928–1929), he devoted much of his life to a political care ...

and head of the

provincial assembly Provincial may refer to: Government & Administration * Provincial capitals, an administrative sub-national capital of a country * Provincial city (disambiguation) * Provincial minister (disambiguation) * Provincial Secretary, a position in Ca ...

Count Stanisław Badeni. A delegation from the city of

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...

was headed by mayor Vladimir Srb and former director of the National Theatre, František Adolf Šubert. Due to recent deaths of both the

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...

and

Greek Catholic The term Greek Catholic Church can refer to a number of Eastern Catholic Churches following the Byzantine (Greek) liturgy, considered collectively or individually. The terms Greek Catholic, Greek Catholic church or Byzantine Catholic, Byzantine Ca ...

archbishops, the building was blessed by the

Armenian Catholic Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian Diaspora, Armenian communities across the ...

archbishop of Lviv, Izaak Mikołaj Isakowicz, alongside

rabbi A rabbi () is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi – known as ''semikha'' – following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of ...

Ezechiel Caro and the Protestant pastor Garfel. The grand opening gala that evening included excerpts from: * The

ballet Ballet () is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread and highly technical form ...

''Baśń nocy świętojańskiej'' (''Tale of the

Midsummer Night Midsummer is a celebration of the season of summer usually held at a date around the summer solstice. It has pagan pre-Christian roots in Europe. The undivided Christian Church designated June 24 as the feast day of the early Christian martyr S ...

'') by

Jan Kasprowicz Jan Kasprowicz (12 December 1860 – 1 August 1926) was a poet, playwright, critic and translator; a foremost representative of Young Poland. Biography Kasprowicz was born in the village of Szymborze (now part of Inowrocław) within the Provi ...

and

Seweryn Berson Seweryn Berson (1858–1917) was a Polish lawyer and composer. Born in Nowy Sącz, early in his youth he moved to Lwów (then in Galicia, currently in Ukraine), where he spent most of his life. A student of Berlin-based conservatory of Heinrich ...

* The

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a libre ...

, ''Janek'' by Władysław Żeleński, about the life of

Carpathian The Carpathian Mountains or Carpathians () are a range of mountains forming an arc across Central Europe. Roughly long, it is the third-longest European mountain range after the Ural Mountains, Urals at and the Scandinavian Mountains at . The ...

mountain-dwellers, with an

aria In music, an aria ( Italian: ; plural: ''arie'' , or ''arias'' in common usage, diminutive form arietta , plural ariette, or in English simply air) is a self-contained piece for one voice, with or without instrumental or orchestral accompa ...

sung by the

Ukrainian Ukrainian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Ukraine * Something relating to Ukrainians, an East Slavic people from Eastern Europe * Something relating to demographics of Ukraine in terms of demography and population of Ukraine * Som ...

tenor A tenor is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. The tenor's vocal range extends up to C5. The low extreme for tenors i ...

, Oleksandr Myshuha, for whom it was specially written. * A

comedy Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term ori ...

''Odludki'' (''Recluses'') by Aleksander Fredro

Architectural style

The Lviv Theatre of Opera and Ballet is built in the classical tradition using forms and details of Neo-Renaissance and Neo-Baroque styles. There are also elements of Art Nouveau. The

stucco Stucco or render is a construction material made of aggregates, a binder, and water. Stucco is applied wet and hardens to a very dense solid. It is used as a decorative coating for walls and ceilings, exterior walls, and as a sculptural and a ...

mouldings and oil paintings on the walls and ceilings of the multi-tiered auditorium and foyer give it a richly festive appearance. The Opera's imposing facade is opulently decorated with numerous niches,

Corinthian columns The Corinthian order (Greek: Κορινθιακός ρυθμός, Latin: ''Ordo Corinthius'') is the last developed of the three principal classical orders of Ancient Greek architecture and Roman architecture. The other two are the Doric order ...

, pilasters, balustrades, cornices, statues, reliefs and stucco garlands. Standing in niches on either side of the main entrance are allegorical figures representing Comedy and Tragedy sculpted by

Antoni Popiel Antoni Popiel (13 June 1865, in Szczakowa, Galicia (now Jaworzno) – 7 July 1910, in Velykyi Liubin near Lviv) was a Polish sculptor. Life He studied at the School of Fine Arts, Kraków from 1882 to 1884, with Izydor Jabłoński, Wład ...

and

Tadeusz Barącz ''Tadeusz'' is a Polish first name, derived from Thaddaeus. Tadeusz may refer to: * Tadeusz Bór-Komorowski (1895–1966), Polish military leader * Tadeusz Borowski (1922–1951), Polish writer and The Holocaust survivor * Tadeusz Boy-Żeleń ...

; figures of

muse In ancient Greek religion and mythology, the Muses ( grc, Μοῦσαι, Moûsai, el, Μούσες, Múses) are the inspirational goddesses of literature, science, and the arts. They were considered the source of the knowledge embodied in the ...

s embellish the top of the

cornice In architecture, a cornice (from the Italian ''cornice'' meaning "ledge") is generally any horizontal decorative moulding that crowns a building or furniture element—for example, the cornice over a door or window, around the top edge of a ...

. The building is crowned by large bronze statues, symbolizing Glory, Poetry and Music.The Lviv Theatre of Opera and Ballet, ''Lviv Best Portal'
The Lviv Theatre of Opera and Ballet architectural description
The theatre, beautifully decorated inside and outside, became a centrefold of the achievements in sculpture and painting of Western Europe at the end of the 19th century. The internal decoration was prepared by some of the most renowned Polish artists of the time. Among them were

Stanisław Wójcik Stanisław Wójcik (2 May 1904 – 2 July 1981) was a Polish footballer. He played in one match for the Poland national football team The Poland national football team ( pl, Reprezentacja Polski w piłce nożnej) has represented Poland ...

(allegorical sculptures of Poetry, Music, Fame, Fortune, Comedy and Tragedy),

Julian Markowski Julian may refer to: People * Julian (emperor) (331–363), Roman emperor from 361 to 363 * Julian (Rome), referring to the Roman gens Julia, with imperial dynasty offshoots * Saint Julian (disambiguation), several Christian saints * Julian (gi ...

Tadeusz Wiśniowiecki ''Tadeusz'' is a Polish first name, derived from Thaddaeus. Tadeusz may refer to: * Tadeusz Bór-Komorowski (1895–1966), Polish military leader * Tadeusz Borowski (1922–1951), Polish writer and The Holocaust survivor * Tadeusz Boy-Żeleńsk ...

, Piotr Wojtowicz (relief depicting the coat of arms of Lviv),

Juliusz Bełtowski Juliusz is a given name. Notable people with the name include: *Juliusz Bardach (1914–2010), Polish legal historian *Juliusz Bursche (1862–1942), bishop of the Evangelical-Augsburg Church in Poland *Juliusz Bogdan Deczkowski (1924–1998), note ...

(bas-relief of Gorgolewski) and

(sculptures of Muses decorating the façade). Among the painters to decorate the interior were Tadeusz Popiel (staircases), Stanisław Rejchan (main hall), Stanisław Dębicki,

Stanisław Kaczor-Batowski upKaczor-Batowski in 1907 Stanisław Kaczor-Batowski (1866–1946) was a Polish realist and romanticist painter. Born in Lwów (then ''Lemberg'' in Austro-Hungarian Galicia, now Lviv, Ukraine), in 1885 he graduated from the Kraków-based Acad ...

and

Marceli Harasimowicz Marceli Harasimowicz (1859 in Warsaw – 1935 in Lwów) was a Polish landscape painter and museum curator. Life and work As a child he followed his mother on her travels abroad. In 1867, he took his first art lessons in Zürich and continued in ...

(

foyer A lobby is a room in a building used for entry from the outside. Sometimes referred to as a foyer, reception area or an entrance hall, it is often a large room or complex of rooms (in a theatre, opera house, concert hall, showroom, cinema, etc ...

). The team supervised by the abovementioned artists included further painters, among them

Aleksander Augustynowicz Aleksander Augustynowicz (born February 7, 1865 in Iskrzynia, died August 23, 1944 in Warsaw) was a Polish painter, active between 1865 and 1944 in Poland. Biography Aleksander Augustynowicz was born in Iskrzynia on February 7, to his father Win ...

Ludwik Kohler Ludwik () is a Polish given name. Notable people with the name include: * Ludwik Czyżewski, Polish WWII general * Ludwik Fleck (1896–1961), Polish medical doctor and biologist * Ludwik Gintel (1899–1973), Polish-Israeli Olympic soccer playe ...

Walery Kryciński Walery is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Lelis, within Ostrołęka County, Masovian Voivodeship, in east-central Poland. It lies approximately south-east of Lelis, north of Ostrołęka, and north of Warsaw. Referenc ...

, Henryk Kuhn,

Edward Pietsch Edward is an English given name. It is derived from the Anglo-Saxon name ''Ēadweard'', composed of the elements '' ēad'' "wealth, fortune; prosperous" and '' weard'' "guardian, protector”. History The name Edward was very popular in Anglo-Sa ...

Zygmunt Rozwadowski Zygmunt Rozwadowski (25 January 1870 – 23 July 1950) was a Polish painter. His work was part of the painting event in the art competition at the 1928 Summer Olympics The 1928 Summer Olympics ( nl, Olympische Zomerspelen 1928), officia ...

Tadeusz Rybkowski ''Tadeusz'' is a Polish first name, derived from Thaddaeus. Tadeusz may refer to: * Tadeusz Bór-Komorowski (1895–1966), Polish military leader * Tadeusz Borowski (1922–1951), Polish writer and The Holocaust survivor * Tadeusz Boy-Żeleń ...

and Julian Zuber. The main

curtain A curtain is a piece of cloth or other material intended to block or obscure light, air drafts, or (in the case of a shower curtain), water. A curtain is also the movable screen or theater curtain, drape in a theatre that separates the stage fro ...

was decorated by

Gallery

File:Львівський національний академічний театр опери та балету імені Соломії Крушельницької 13.jpg, Lviv Theatre of Opera and Ballet at night File:Lvivska Opera-2013.JPG, Lviv Opera front view File:Львівська опера2.jpg, Eastern view File:Lviv Opera Building Sculture "Glory".jpg, Lviv Opera Building Sculpture "Glory" File:TeatrWielkiLwow4.jpg, Lviv Opera, a view of the balconies from the floor

Notes

''a.'' ''The Habsburg Empire. The World of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy in Original Photographs 1840-1916'' by Franz Hubmann, Vienna, 1971, attributes this theatre to Fellner & Helmer.

References

External links

*
Lviv National Opera
- Official website
Opera House, Lviv Krushelnitskaya National Academic Theatre of Opera and Ballet (Lviv)
{{Authority control Theatres completed in 1900 Buildings and structures in Lviv Opera houses in Ukraine Tourist attractions in Lviv Music venues completed in 1900 Culture in Lviv Theatres in Lviv 1900 establishments in Austria-Hungary Establishments in the Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria Academic theatres Institutions with the title of National in Ukraine