The historic opera house of the Paris Opéra, the Palais Garnier, is to close its doors in mid-2027 for a two-year renovation, the Opéra said on Thursday.
The closure of the almost 150-year-old edifice, one of the architectural jewels of Paris, will be followed by the closure for the renovation of the opera's giant newer stage, the Opéra Bastille, opened in 1989, for at least two years from mid-2030, it added.
It said the cost of the twin renovations of two of the most iconic sites in European opera and ballet was estimated by France's top state audit body, the Court of Accounts, at at least €200 million by 2030, in a report published last week. This amount is "currently being updated, based on ongoing checks," it said. The opera said both opera houses needed work to modernize their stage infrastructure.
In a report last week, the Court of Accounts said that both buildings were "aging" and had been the victims of "long-standing underfunding," The closure schedule means that the Opéra should keep one stage open in the French capital during the work, but it also expects to perform elsewhere in France and the city during this period.