The War Memorial Opera House, one of the most beautiful and technologically advanced performing arts centers in the world, is a true San Francisco jewel.
Designed in the magnificent Beaux-Arts style by Arthur Brown Jr., architect of Coit Tower and City Hall, the War Memorial Opera House is both a local and international landmark. After opening its doors to audiences for the first time on October 15, 1932, the exquisite and stunning War Memorial Opera House has been home to the San Francisco Ballet from the company's earliest days. At the time of its construction, the stage complex was the largest and most technologically advanced in the United States, and one of the most acoustically advanced venues in the world.
Today, after a seismic retrofitting following the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, the Opera House boasts state-of-the-art equipment, a refurbished interior graced with decadent beaux-arts trappings, 3,200 newly re-upholstered plush velvet seats, expanded access for people with disabilities, and numerous refreshment bars for the intermission crowds.
