Family · Cairo
Cairo Opera House
Cairo's premier performing arts venue, set on the southern tip of Gezira Island in Zamalek and home to Egypt's finest musical ensembles.
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The story
The present Opera House opened on 10 October 1988 on Gezira Island in Cairo, built with a grant from the Japanese government in an Islamic architectural style. It replaced the Khedivial Opera House, which Khedive Ismail built in 1869 in the Azbakeya district to mark the opening of the Suez Canal, and which went up in only six months. That earlier house burned down on 28 October 1971 after about 102 years as a cultural beacon. Today the venue forms part of Cairo's National Cultural Centre.
Good to know
- The current house opened on 10 October 1988, funded by a Japanese grant.
- It succeeded the Khedivial Opera House, built in six months in 1869 and destroyed by fire in 1971.