Sydney Opera House

The Sydney Opera House is one of Australia's most iconic tourist destinations, an award-winning, multi-venue performing arts center.

The Sydney Opera House sits on Bennelong Point in Sydney Harbour. Its exact address is 2 Macquarie St, Sydney New South Wales 2000, Australia.

The Opera House contains five main performance spaces, a recording studio, five restaurants and four souvenir shops. The performance spaces include a 2,679-seat Concert Hall (home to the Sydney Symphony), a 1,547-seat Opera House, a 544-seat proscenium Drama Theater, a 398-seat, end-stage Playhouse and a flexible Studio space. 

A variety of events happen at the Opera House, including ballet performances, Rap concerts, the "Australian Idol" grand finale and the New Year's Eve fireworks.

In 1956, Joe Cahill, the Premier of New South Wales, introduced an international architectural competition to design an opera house. This building would be constructed on Bennelong Point.

A 38-year-old Danish architect, Jørn Utzon, sent in his entry, intended to resemble a ship on the water. It was originally rejected, but American judge Eero Saarinen came late, noticed it in the reject pile and decided it was something special.c On January 29th, 1957, Utzon's entry was declared the winner. The design beat over 200 other entries.

Construction began in March 1959c. It was originally only supposed to take four years, but due to delays caused by monetary issues and the new government elected in 1965, it wasn't officially opened until 1973. The first performance was Prokofiev's War and Peace.

• Opera Australia
• Sydney Symphony
• Sydney Theatre Company
• The Australian Ballet
• Australian Chamber Orchestra
• Bangarra Dance Theatre
• Sydney Festival
• Sydney Philharmonia Choirs
• Bell Shakespeare

Parking is available on the Concourse for $15.00. To check availability, call 011-61-2-9250-7185 any time from 9:00 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. Monday through Saturday, or 10:00 a.m. until 6:00 p.m. Sunday. When calling, make sure to have your RTA details (current RTA permit number and expiration date) and credit card ready.

Parking is also available in Wilson's Sydney Opera House Car Park, a public car park serving Sydney Opera House visitors and ticket buyers, as well as visitors and residents of East Circular Quay and Macquarie Street. Availability may be limited. Sydney Opera House recommends that those wishing to use this car park arrive early.

Wilson's Sydney Opera House Car Park is located at 2 Macquarie Street (northern end), with vehicular access adjacent to the Sydney Opera House Forecourt. To confirm pricing, visit their website.

Other nearby public car parks include the following:

• Sir Stamford Hotel car park, Alfred Street

• Intercontinental Hotel car park, Phillip Street

• Secure Parking at 131 Macquarie Streetc

Circular Quay is a five- to seven-minute walk from the Sydney Opera House. There, one can get buses, trains and ferries to Circular Quay.

• Sydney Buses timetables
  

• CityRail timetables
  

• Sydney Ferries timetables
  

Bicycle parking spaces are available to the public underneath the Sydney Opera House Monumental Steps. Make sure to bring your own lock.

A complimentary shuttle bus, designed for elderly and less mobile customers, runs between Circular Quay near Stand E (under the Cahill Expressway) and the Vehicle Concourse. Seating is limited and available on a first come, first served basis. There is no bus service for any theatres on Sunday evenings.c

A list of run times for the shuttle bus is located on the Sydney Opera House website.

For information, contact the Sydney Opera House at these numbers:

General information: 011-61-2-9250-7111

Box Office: 011-61-2-9250-7777

Tour Information: 011-61-2-9250-7250

You can also write them at their mailing address: Box Office, Sydney Opera House, GPO Box R239, Royal Exchange, Sydney NSW 1225, Australia.