“The titanium and glass National Centre for the Performing Arts in Beijing is informally called The Egg. In every beautiful image of the exterior, the architecture seems to rise like a being or bob like an ovum in the surrounding waters.
Constructed between 2001 and 2007, the National Grand Theater is an oval dome surrounded by a man-made lake. Designed by French architect Paul Andreu, the stunning building is 212 meters long, 144 meters wide, and 46 meters high. A hallway beneath the lake leads into the building. It is located just west of Tiananmen Square and the Great Hall of the People.
The performing arts building is one of several bold designs constructed for the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Interestingly, while this modern building was being constructed in China, a futuristic, elliptical tube that architect Andreu designed for the Charles de Gaulle airport collapsed, killing several people.
Inside Beijing’s Egg
The National Grand Theater by French Architect Paul Andreu. Guang Niu/Getty Images
French architect Paul Andreu designed the National Centre for the Performing Arts to be a symbol for Beijing. The performing arts center is one of several bold new designs constructed to entertain patrons of the Beijing Summer Olympics in 2008.
Inside the elliptical dome are four performance spaces: an Opera House, at the center of the building, seats 2,398; the Concert Hall, located in the eastern part of the building, seats 2,017; the Drama Theater, located in the western part of the building, seats 1,035; and a small, multi-functional theatre, seating 556 patrons, is used for chamber music, solo performances, and many modern works of theatre and dance.”
Explore Beijing’s modern architecture
