New Opera House for Beijing

New Opera House for Beijing

French architect Paul Andreu is optimistic that plans to build a controversial, futuristic opera house in Beijing could to get the official go ahead next month, according to report of AFT on April 17.

"The final approval should come in May, there's no problem, it's just a matter of time," Andreu told AFP by telephone, as work on the site of the National Theatre got under way in some confusion.

Andreu, who last year unveiled plans for the building, said approval to begin the groundwork had already been given, as the project is set to be built in a short time.

"I met several officials during my recent trip to Beijing and none raised any problem," he said, adding that all the paperwork needed for a final approval would be handed over by the end of April.

China's normally docile press fanned controversy over the project earlier this month, with contradictory reports over approval for it to go ahead.

A last minute scrapping of plans for a formal ceremony for commencement of work added to the confusion.

"The authorities at the highest level sought to display extreme caution," said Andreu. "They did not want to launch the project before final approval had been given."

The futuristic building is set to be built bang next door to central Beijing's Tiananmen Square by 2002.

It will feature a titanium and glass-dome set in the center of a lake. The building will contain a 2,500-seat opera hall, a concert hall with 2,000 seats, a theatre with 1,200 seats and a smaller theatre that will seat 520. Visitors will enter through a tunnel under the lake, which will be surrounded with grass and trees.

Andreu, 61, chief architect of Aeroports de Paris, has worked on airport terminals in Jakarta, Cairo and Seoul as well as the Grande Arche de la Defense west of Paris. He has also designed the new Shanghai airport which opened in October and the Guangzhou sports complex set to be completed in 2001.