London’s Royal Opera House (ROH) has launched an invited architectural competition dedicated to transforming the entrances and surrounding public areas of the Covent Garden building into a more “open and tantalizing” space. Seven firms have been invited to participate, including the Olympic Cauldron designer Thomas Heatherwick and New York’s Diller Scofidio + Renfro.
Tony Hall, Chief Executive of the Royal Opera House said: “We are hugely excited about the ideas and inspiration the competition will generate. The Royal Opera House is looking for the team who, if we can raise the funds needed to fulfill our shared ambitions, will create the next evolution of our building. We are keen to investigate the possibilities of opening up the building even more to ensure that we have the very best facilities to welcome our loyal and existing audiences and to reach out to new ones.”
The seven practices shortlisted for the ROH competition are:
- Amanda Levete Architects
- Caruso St John Architects
- Diller Scofidio + Renfro
- Heatherwick Studio
- Jamie Fobert Architects
- Stanton Williams Architects
- Witherford Watson Mann Architects
The architect will be selected in December of this year.
Image by Flickr user Truus, Bob & Jan of Holland, licensed through Creative Commons.
