Venue: Hanoi Opera House
Town: Tràng Tiền, VN
Capacity: 598

The Hanoi Opera House (French: Opéra de Hanoï), or the Grand Opera House (French: Grand Opéra, Vietnamese: Nhà hát Lớn Hà Nội) is an opera house in central Hanoi, Vietnam. It is located at August Revolution Square, anchoring the head of Tràng Tiền street. Originally built by the French colonial administration as the Hanoi Municipal Theater between 1901 and 1911, it is one of three opera houses built during the colonial period in French Indochina, alongside the Haiphong Opera House and Saigon Opera House. One of Hanoi's most prominent architectural landmarks, the Hanoi Opera House was modeled on the Palais Garnier, the older of Paris's two opera houses, but with a smaller scale and using materials that are more suitable to the local environment. Built in the Neoclassical style with French Renaissance elements, the design was initially conceived by French architect Broyer and Chief Inspector of Public Buildings Victorin Harlay, and later fully realized by French architect François Lagisquet in collaboration with Harlay. Construction started in June 1901 and finished a decade later in December 1911. A source of great municipal pride, the theater became the heart of French cultural life in Hanoi. The colonial government subsidized an opera company to sing each winter for local French residents, at the cost of the native taxpayer. However, the 870-seat theater stood mostly empty for the rest of the year, with only the occasional military band or touring soloist making brief appearances. On 19 August 1945, a mass rally attended by hundreds of thousands took place at Theater Square in front of the Opera House, sparking the August Revolution which brought an end to the Japanese occupation of Indochina. In September 1945, Viet Minh leaders proclaimed the independence of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam from the Opera House balcony. The building also bore witness to street fighting during the subsequent Battle of Hanoi, as French forces recapture the city in December 1946.