Gdańsk
Completion date: 2009
The building, which nowadays is the home of the Baltic State Opera was built in the years 1914-1915 as a riding hall. In 1915, its destination was changed into a sport and entertainment hall (Sporthalle), in which many sport events took place, i.a: boxing fights. After the WWII, the facility has been rebuilt and adapted for Opera needs. The first spectacle – Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin- performed on the 28th of June 1950, is considered as the beginning of the Baltic Opera history. In the 50’s of the previous century, the Baltic Opera and the Philharmonic Orchestra merged and became the Baltic National Opera and Philharmonic. In 1994, the formal split of the Baltic National Opera and Philharmonic into two independent institutions took place. The Opera remained in the Aleja Zwycięstwa Str. in the Gdańsk’s Wrzeszcz, while the Philharmonic Orchestra received a complex of buildings after the old power station, located on the island of Ołowianka, where the Music and Congress Centre was commissioned.
During the stage modernization, between October and December 2003, the P.S. TEATR company has delivered controlling consoles and Strand Lighting reflectors. During the next modernization, in 2009, there has been digital Wall Rack dimmers by Strand Lighting delivered and installed – 16 sets of 6×24 2,5 kW circuits, and 10×6 5W circuits). The installation included also: Lighting Console Light Paletta VL1500 by Strand Lighting, heavy smoke machine, and a complete light park, based on the Italian’s brand SPOTLIGHT: 22 pcs. of 2,5 kW profile reflectors, 52 pcs. of 2,5 kW, PC lens reflectors, 12 pcs. of 2,0 kW fresnel lens reflectors, 6 pcs. of 2,5 kW fresnel lens reflectors, 6 pcs. of 1,2 kW fresnel lens reflectors, 6 pcs. of 2,5 kW PC lens reflectors and 70 asymmetrical floodlights.
Despite of the many modernizations and rebuilding actions (i.a. addition of the foyer), the Baltic Opera remains the Poland’s smallest opera hall (476 seats). In May 2011, Komitet Obywatelski Budowy Nowej Opery Bałtyckiej (The New Baltic Opera Construction Civil Committee) came to life, with a goal of the creation of a new, larger Baltic Opera abode, with a superior acoustics and modern stage machinery solutions.
