The building of the old opera house, which nowadays is used mainly as a concert hall for the local symphony orchestra, has a very rich history.
The opera house, built from the design of architect Richard Lucae from Berlin, opened in 1880 in Frankfurt's financial district. The project was financed by the city residents themselves. They were very proud that Kaiser Wilhelm I himself attended the opening and was delighted by what he saw.
In the wartime year of 1944, the building was bombed, as a result of which all the statues decorating the building were significantly damaged. After the war, Franz Kruger and Georg Huter took up their restoration. They had to reconstruct not only the compositions on the facade of the theater, but also those in the vestibule. The restoration was carried out, once again, with the financial support of the city residents; a "Joint Stock Company of the Opera" was even organized. The campaign went down in history as the largest of those aimed at saving the city's architectural monuments.
The restored and renovated opera building welcomed visitors in 1981, 100 years after its first opening. Guests were greeted with Gustav Mahler's Eighth Symphony, which requires about a thousand musicians to perform. This work is called the "Symphony of a Thousand" and is one of the largest-scale in the entire history of music.
The opera moved to a modern building next door, and the old hall became a concert venue. In addition to symphony orchestra performances, plays and various kinds of productions are held here.
