Before the refurbishment of the Opera House in 1980, a 12-storey building was constructed opposite the artists’ entrance in Hajós Street. The building, with its more than 4,000 square metres, was built in place of a demolished tenement, and it houses several offices, dressing rooms and rehearsal rooms of the institution.
The chorus rooms of the Hungarian State Opera Chorus and the Children’s Chorus can be found here, and the Opera House is heated from the boilers located on the top floor of the Administrative Building. The heating and cooling systems of the building, constructed in 1979, are extremely poor, the equipment is outdated and its refurbishment, the renewal of its façade and the change of function of some of its rooms are important parts of the Opera’s modernisation programme.
A special feature of the Administrative Building is its connection to the Opera House by a tunnel under Hajós Street, which provides a safer route for transporting musical instruments and, in rainy and cold weather, a more comfortable way to reach the other building. Fireworks to celebrate the New Year are let off from its more than 30-metre high roof every year.
Photo: Zsófia Pályi