With a scale of 19.1 hectares and a total investment of VND 12,756 billion, this is also a rare large-scale cultural and artistic project built with 100% socialized capital from Sun Group. The entire process of design, construction, and operation is under the strict management and supervision of Hanoi city.
Mr. Nguyen Xuan Thang - Member of the Politburo, Director of the Ho Chi Minh National Academy of Politics
At the event, Comrade Nguyen Xuan Thang - Member of the Politburo, Director of the Ho Chi Minh National Academy of Politics expressed his emotion when the Hanoi Opera House will be ranked among the world's most famous opera houses: “This is a place where the world's quintessence converges, where the world's most outstanding advancements converge, and a place where we can enjoy world-renowned artistic programs. But at the same time, this is also a place to spread Vietnam's cultural values and the talents of Vietnamese people to the world. We expect this to be a testament to the beginning, for more modern cultural works, so that the capital Hanoi deserves to be a civilized, modern, green, and beautiful capital.”
Groundbreaking ceremony for the Hanoi Opera House and Themed Cultural and Artistic Park project
Comrade Nguyen Xuan Thang also affirmed that the project, invested by Sun Group Corporation, has deeply grasped Resolution 68 of the Politburo on developing the private economy as the most important driving force for economic development, diversifying resources, public-private partnership models, and private investment models using social resources to serve the interests of the entire people.
A world-class "sanctuary of art"
The Hanoi Opera House is designed by Italian architectural legend Renzo Piano, one of the most influential architects of the 20th century. As the first Italian to be included in the Top 100 most influential people in the world, Renzo Piano has received many prestigious awards throughout his 60-year career, such as the Pritzker Prize, considered the Nobel Prize of architecture. The Hanoi Opera House project is considered a stroke of luck for Vietnam, when the legend Renzo Piano, at 88 years old and with 67 years of professional experience, chose to dedicate his life's accumulated essence to its design.
Hanoi Opera House designed by architect Renzo Piano
Although the Italian architectural legend Renzo Piano could not be present at the groundbreaking ceremony, he sent a special message and his feelings about the project to which he dedicated so much effort: “ Although I cannot be present with you today, my heart is here. I send everyone my best wishes and complete joy for this special day. I love this project, and I believe it is the project I love the most. Because this project is connected to music, and music is my passion. And the Theater is an island, which always carries magic within it. Amidst the water, this musical island will be more magnificent and full of magic. The greatest thing for me is to create a work where people can come together, listen to music, enjoy, and share happiness ”.
With a total floor area of approximately 40,980 m² (excluding parking and technical areas), nearly 6 times the area of an 11-a-side football field, The Theater has two large auditoriums, including a main auditorium. The opera hall (capacity of 1,797 seats) and a multi-purpose hall with a movable seating system that can be moved to create space for standing events such as live music performances, concerts.., with a capacity for 1430 standing and 216 balcony seats. Besides the two auditoriums, The Theater also has many other multi-purpose spaces such as the Main Hall, Rehearsal and practice rooms, Museum... This will not only be a place that can serve various types of artistic performances such as symphony concerts, Broadway-style music performances, classical opera and ballet, award ceremonies, Galas, large-scale entertainment shows…, but also a world-class space for cultural and artistic exchange and entertainment for the residents of the capital.
Hanoi Opera House with a dome inspired by the gentle West Lake waves
The most special feature of the theater is the architecture dome unprecedented, inspired by pearls rising from the West Lake water, with an ultra-thin, super-load-bearing structure and coated with a material that creates a pearlescent effect, to reflect the colors of the West Lake water as time moves throughout the day.
Built to host world-class art programs, a destination for globally renowned artists, Hanoi Opera House is expected to be on the list of the world's most famous art cathedrals in Paris, Milan, Berlin, London, New York, Los Angeles…. This will also be a project that demonstrates the values and cultural connections of the world with Vietnamese culture, bringing Vietnam to the world.
Elevating the capital's status in the new era
Not only a sacred land of history, the political - cultural - economic center of the country, Hanoi is also the cradle of many unique cultural values, the spiritual center of the nation. Beside preserving the long-standing cultural values of the ancient capital region, investing in developing new cultural institutions such as a world-class theater, national museums, and stages, and a series of key projects such as renovating and building parks along the Tô Lịch river... are considered important milestones for Hanoi to change its appearance, “become a model socialist capital, developing on 5 pillars, with culture and people placed first”, as directed by General Secretary Tô Lam during a working session with the Standing Committee of the Hanoi Party Committee on August 9, 2024 .
Hanoi Opera House promotes the image of Vietnam as innovative, creative, and integrated
Speaking at the event, Mr. Duong Duc Tuan - Vice Chairman of Hanoi City People's Committee emphasized that in the Capital City Planning of Hanoi for the period 2021-2030, with a vision to 2050, and the Adjustment of the General Capital Planning to 2045, with a vision to 2065, culture and heritage are identified as one of the five important development pillars. In the context of deep international integration, the investment in iconic cultural works has extremely great significance: affirming the position of the capital city with a thousand years of culture, while promoting the image of Vietnam as innovative, creative, humane, integrated, and sustainably developing.
“ This is a project with profound humanistic values, aiming to serve the community, not for profit, and funded by socialized capital - which is very rare in the world, as most major theaters are state-funded or sponsored. The fact that Sun Group Corporation - one of the leading private enterprises pioneering investment, has shown a desire to create a complex of typical cultural works, with modern, novel, and international architecture, demonstrating the aspiration to rise” - Mr. Duong Duc Tuan affirmed.
The project is invested in space according to a green philosophy and honors the cultural and historical values of the capital
With the Hanoi Opera House project, Italian architectural legend Renzo Piano spent many years studying the culture and history of Hanoi before conceptualizing the design. He brought Hanoi's inspiration into the theater's design with a soft, wave-like dome inspired by West Lake (Ho Tay), and created more green space for the land associated with cultural and historical heritage. Ponds and lakes around the area, such as the lotus pond of Pho Linh pagoda, Thuy Su lake, will be invested in for cleaning, renovation, restoration, and planting West Lake (Tay Ho) lotus to harmonize with the entire park area. West Lake (Ho Tay) will also have 8 piers and water tourism routes, including a pier right near the theater, allowing people and tourists to conveniently access this iconic cultural and artistic work.
With investment in space according to a green philosophy and honoring the cultural and historical values of the capital, the project complex is expected to become an international art destination, a world-class cultural and entertainment park, bringing the capital's residents an attractive entertainment spot and an iconic structure that world tourists must visit, just as they wish to see Australia's Opera House (Sydney Opera House).
Mr. Dang Minh Truong, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Sun Group
Sharing about the project, Mr. Dang Minh Truong, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Sun Group, affirmed that this is a mission - a special honor for Sun Group, a token of gratitude from those born and raised in Hanoi, to create a cultural symbol for the capital and the country. “We are living in an era of the country's strong resurgence - an era of rapid and sustainable development for a strong, powerful, prosperous, civilized, and happy Vietnam. This is an era where humans are placed at the center, where every citizen has the right to enjoy development values and scholarly literary values. The construction of the Hanoi Opera House is a step that expresses the aspiration to bring Vietnam confidently, self-reliantly, and in step with the world” - Mr. Dang Minh Truong shared at the event.
Accompanying Sun Group to create this extremely challenging project complex, at the groundbreaking ceremony, Vietcombank awarded a Letter of Approval for credit provision to implement the project investment. More than just a financial partner, Vietcombank's support demonstrates a belief and readiness to contribute to an iconic project of the capital, Hanoi.
Expected, Hanoi Opera House will be completed in 2027./.
