Hanoi Opera House

Opera House in Hanoi

CC BY-SA 4.0 / Hieucd

The Hanoi Opera House, built in 1911 by the French colonial rulers, was designed to resemble the old opera house in Paris, Palais Garnier. On August 16, 1945, the Viet Minh declared their takeover of the city from the building’s balcony.

Constructed over a drained pond, the opera house was designed by architects Harley and Broyer, with construction supervised by M. Travary and M. Savelon. The building combines Greek, Beaux-Arts, and Gothic architectural styles, similar to the Palais Garnier. It is the largest theater in Vietnam, featuring a large stage, a 24 x 24 meter main audience room, and several balconies on the middle floor. Additionally, there are 18 makeup rooms, 2 voice training rooms, a library, and a meeting room backstage. In 1997, the opera house underwent major restoration under the supervision of French-Vietnamese architects Ho Thieu Thri and Hoang Phuc Sinh, incorporating state-of-the-art acoustic and other modern equipment.

The Hanoi Opera House hosts a variety of performances, including folk music, western music concerts, and Vietnamese operetta and drama. Visitors can only enter the building if they are part of the audience for a performance. The steps leading to the building are a popular spot for tourists to take photographs.

The Hanoi Opera House appears in our Complete Guide to Visiting Hanoi!

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