See an opera in the forest

Sopot, Moniuszki st. 12

In Sopot, it's worth going beyond Bohaterów Monte Cassino St. And not just into the area around it with its charming little streets, but a little more uphill. Literally ? because in Upper Sopot, in the forest on the edge of the Tri-City Landscape Park, is one of Sopot's most important sites ? The Forest Opera. This enormous amphitheatre ? with a total area of four hectares and the capacity for several thousand spectators ? was built in 1909. Its major plus, apart from the attractive location, is the very good acoustics. In more than one hundred years of existence, it has seen thousands of symphonic concerts (the vast stage can easily accommodate an orchestra of 100), concerts by pop, rock and jazz stars, cabaret performances, ballets and meetings ? including Hitler Youth rallies during the war. Nonetheless, the Forest Opera has really become famous for the International Festival of Song, organised there for 60 years and regularly broadcast on television in communist times and beyond. It is, however, most associated with opera. Before the war, many were presented, as the Opera hosted the Wagner Festival. After the war, Gdańsk's Baltic Opera attempted to re-introduce opera onto the Sopot stage and in recent years Sopot has reverted to organising  Wagnerian events.

The amphitheatre is currently undergoing thorough renovation, which should last until the beginning of 2012. As a result, the house will be enlarged to 5,000 seats, the stage will be reconstructed and modern dressing-rooms built. The new roof construction will, however, prove the greatest difference, as it will finally be all-year-round ? the previous one had to be pulled across for winter.

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