The new Royal Theatre in Copenhagen

A new highlight within the cultural landscape of the Danish capital Copenhagen was opened on February 16th, 2008. The new waterfront building for the Royal Theatre was designed by Danish architects Boje Lundgaard and Lene Tranberg.

The new Royal Theatre, located on the harbour front in Copenhagen, takes form as a pronounced, yet respectful completion of the surrounding urban structure. The theatre embraces the harbour, opens to theatregoers as well as those passing by, and becomes the new pivot point in the passage along the waterfront. The building complex consists of three compositional elements: the foyer, a broad "sidewalk" floating on thin columns over the water, the auditorium and scene tower, clad in copper, and the service area, placed in an expansive and unifying roof level, clad in glass.

These three elements form a charged, geometric composition that completes the surrounding urban structure, opens the city to the harbour, and disposes the theatre as an experientially rich, well-functioning "theatre-machine," whose purpose is to create the optimal conditions for the meeting of the public and the theatrical spectacle.

www.skuespilhuset.dk