Detroit Opera House - Photos Decor Detail
Detroit Opera House
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This picture gallery is meant to showcase the amount of meticulous detail in the decor and design of the Opera House interior and exterior
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The Proscenium Arch. An entire year was devoted to meticulously recasting plaster; a professor from Detroit's College for Creative Studies spent months on scaffolding, painting frescoes freehand; more than 850 color tests were performed in a lab to match the theater's original paint scheme. There are about 25 panels all the way across the arch. They depict industry and commerce in Detroit in the early 1920's.
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Plaster ornament detail as seen on the Proscenium Arch
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Plaster ornament detail as seen on the Proscenium Arch
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Plaster ornament detail as seen on the Proscenium Arch
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Plaster ornament detail as seen on the Proscenium Arch
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Plaster ornament detail as seen on the Proscenium Arch
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Plaster ornament detail as seen on the Proscenium Arch
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Plaster ornamentation on arches left and right from stage
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Plaster ornament detail as seen on side arches
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Plaster ornament detail as seen on side arches
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Plaster ornament detail as seen on side arches
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Plaster ornament detail as seen on column between arches
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In the bottom face of the center column you can see the glasses the plaster workers put on the face during renovations. This was in honor of Dr. David DiChiera, who founded Michigan Opera Theater.
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Center column detail
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More ornamentation detail
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Auditorium ceiling details
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A detail shot of a sunburst in the auditorium ceiling.
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Auditorium ceiling details
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Auditorium ceiling details
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Auditorium ceiling details
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"The curtain" - as of July 2023
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Grand Hall staircase, rosette-laden railing.
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Grand Hall staircase, rosette-laden railing.
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The three big chandeliers inside the Grand Hall. The only time they ever left the building was during renovation in 1996. They were apparently too big and too heavy to steal when the building was abandoned for three years in the mid 80's
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Grand Hall chandeliers
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More Grand Hall detail
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Grand Hall ornamentation detail
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The Bellini Opera Theater asked Italian Sculptor, Giuliano Zuccato, to create a bust of Vincenzo Bellini, known as the “Sicilian Swan” for the elegance and beauty of his music. The sculpture was donated by its sculptor and placed in the Grand Lobby of the Detroit Opera House to honor this great composer and as a symbol of the Bellini Opera Theater. The unveiling of the sculpture took place on the stage of the Detroit Opera House on Friday, May 20, 2011, prior to Michigan Opera Theater’s 7:30pm production of Rigoletto. The Bellini Opera Theater was formed in 2010 for the purpose of bringing opera to people in many different venues
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Seating detail
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Plaster detail by the Broadway lobby
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The fireplace inside the man's restroom
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The lovely terra cotta facade along Broadway
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Detail of the Broadway facade
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Detail of the Broadway facade
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Griffin-like creatures adorn the Broadway Terracotta facade
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Detail of the Broadway Terracotta facade
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Detail of the Broadway Terracotta facade