VLADIMIR PUTIN
ARCHIVE OF THE OFFICIAL SITE
OF THE 2008-2012 PRIME MINISTER
OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION
VLADIMIR PUTIN
ARCHIVE OF THE OFFICIAL SITE
OF THE 2008-2012 PRIME MINISTER
OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION
VLADIMIR PUTIN
The Saxon State Opera, also known as Semperoper, after its architect, is in the centre of Dresden, close to the Zwinger Palace and the Dresden Castle.
One of the most celebrated places of Dresden, it was first built by Gottfried Semper in 1838-41. Destroyed by fire in September 1869, it was replaced with a temporary wooden structure seating 1,800 and known as Gewerbehausall. It opened with Goethe's Iphigenie in December 1869. Construction of the new stone opera house started in 1871 and was led by Manfred Semper, Gottfried's elder son, who used his father's plans. The theatre opened in 1878. Its portal is topped by sculptor Johannes Schilling's quadriga with the statues of Dionysus and Ariadne. Monuments on the portal depict Goethe and Schiller, and in the side façade niches Shakespeare, Sophocles, Moliere and Euripides.
Allied bombing of Dresden on February 13, 1945, badly damaged the Semperoper. Only the outer walls and several sculptures survived. The ruins were reinforced after World War Two. Restoration started in 1977 and took eight years. The theatre re-opened symbolically on the 40th anniversary of the air raid, February 13, 1985, with Weber's Der Freischutz-the opera that was performed last before the destruction in 1945.
Fate dealt another blow on the theatre with the flood of August 2002. Its damage was estimated at 27 million Euros. Repairs lasted three months.
The Saxon State Opera is presently one of the most popular in Europe, and its premises among the most imposing.
