Façade of De Munt / La Monnaie

Logo of De Munt or La Monnaie

The Koninklijke Muntschouwburg in short: De Munt (in Dutch), or Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie in short: La Monnaie (in French) is a theatre in Brussels, Belgium. Today it houses the National Opera of Belgium. This federal institution received the name of the theatre in which it is housed. So the name "De Munt / La Monnaie" refers to both the building and the opera company. As Belgium's leading Opera House it is one of the few cultural institutions which receives financial support from the federal government of Belgium. In the last two decades De Munt / La Monnaie has regained its place amongst the principal Opera Houses in Europe. Image File history File links Size of this preview: 800 × 516 pixelsFull resolution (822 × 530 pixel, file size: 302 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 800 × 516 pixelsFull resolution (822 × 530 pixel, file size: 302 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Serge Sudeikins poster for the Bat Theatre (1922). ... Nickname: Map showing the location of Brussels in Belgium Coordinates: Country Belgium Region Brussels-Capital Region Founded 979 Founded (Region) June 18, 1989 Government  - Mayor (Municipality) Freddy Thielemans Area  - Region 162 km²  (62. ... New York State Theater, Lincoln Center, home of the New York City Opera Bolshoi Theatre. ...

History

The first permanent public theatre for opera representations of the court and city of Brussels was built after 1695 by the Venitian architects Paolo and Pietro Bezzi on the site of a building that had served to mint coins. The name of this site "De Munt" or "La Monnaie" (literally "the Mint") would remain attached to the theatre for the centuries to come. The construction of the theatre had been ordered by Maximilian II Emanuel, Elector of Bavaria, at that time Governor of the Habsburg Netherlands. The Elector had charged his "trésorier", the Italian Gio-Paolo Bombarda to finance and supervise the enterprise. The date of the first representation in 1700 remains unknown. The first representation mentioned in the local newspaper was Lully's, Atys, given on the 19th of November 1700. The French operatic repertoire would dominate the Brussels' stage in the following century, although also representations of Venitian operas and other non-French repertoire would be performed on a regular basis. Until the 19th century also normal plays are performed along with opera, ballet and concerts. Already in the 18th-century "de Munt/La Monnaie" was considered the second French-speaking stage after the most prominent theatres in Paris. Under the rule of Prince Charles Alexander of Lorraine, who acted as a very generous patron of the arts, the theatre greatly flourished. At that time it housed an opera company, a ballet and an orchestra. The splendour of the representations diminished during the last years of the Austrian rule, due to the severe politics of the Austrian Emperor Joseph II. Maximilian II Emanuel Maximilian II Emanuel (July 11, 1662 - February 26, 1726) was a Wittelsbach ruler of Bavaria and an elector (Kurfürst) of the Holy Roman Empire. ... The Governor of the Habsburg Netherlands ruled the Seventeen Provinces, after 1581 only the Southern Netherlands as a representative of the Duke of Burgundy (until 1555), the King of Spain (1555-1706) or the Archduke of Austria (1716-1794), all from the house of Habsburg. ... Lully can refer to: Jean-Baptiste Lully Lully, in the Haute-Savoie département, France Lully, a municipality in the canton of Fribourg, Switzerland Lully, a municipality in the canton of Vaud, Switzerland This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share... Atys (Attis) is a tragédie en musique in a prelude and five acts by Jean-Baptiste Lully to a French-language libretto by Philippe Quinault based on Ovids Fasti. ... Prince Charles Alexander of Lorraine Prince Charles Alexander of Lorraine (December 12, 1712 – July 4, 1780) was the son of Leopold Joseph, Duke of Lorraine. ... Joseph II (full name: Joseph Benedikt August Johannes Anton Michel Adam; March 13, 1741 – February 20, 1790) was Holy Roman Emperor from 1765 to 1790 and ruler of the Habsburg lands from 1780 to 1790. ...

After the French revolutionary forces occupied the Belgian provinces in 1795 the theatre became a French Departemental nstitution. Amongst other cuts in the expenses, the theatre had to abolish its "Corps de Ballet". During this period many famous French actors and singers gave regular representations in the theatre during their tour of the provinces of the Empire. After the French period the theatre erected under Bombarda was totally worn out and was finally demolished in 1818. It was replaced by a new Neo-classical building designed by Louis Damesme. Unlik the Bombarda-building which was situated along the street and completely surrounded by other buildings, the new building was placed in the middle of a newly constructed square. This gave the theatre a more monumental appearance, but it was more the result of safety concerns. In this way the building was better accessible to firemen, and the chance that the fire would spread to surrounding buildings was limited. The new auditorium was inaugurated on the 25th of May 1819 with the Opera "La Caravane du Caire" by the Belgian composer André Ernest Modeste Grétry. As the most important French theatre of the new established United Kingdom of the Netherlands the "Monnaie" would witness new heydays. The theatre passed under the supervision of the city of Brussels, who had the right to appoint a direction charged with the exploitation of the theatre. In this period famous actors like François Joseph Talma and singers like Maria Malibran performed at "La Monnaie". André Ernest Modeste Grétry (February 8, 1741 – September 24, 1813), a Belgian composer, who worked from 1767 onwards in France. ... Map of the kingdom United Kingdom of the Netherlands (1815 - 1830) (1839) (Dutch: Verenigd Koninkrijk der Nederlanden, French: Royaume-Uni des Pays-Bas and German: Vereinigte Königreich der Niederlande) were the unofficial names used to refer to a new unified European state created during the Congress of Vienna in... François Joseph Talma (January 15, 1763 - 1826) was a French actor. ... The mezzo-soprano (although she commonly sang soprano parts) Maria Malibran (March 24, 1808 – September 23, 1836), was one of the most famous opera singers of the 19th century. ...

De Munt played a prominent role in the formation of Belgium. In August 1830, stirred by a performance of Auber's La Muette de Portici (Dutch: De stomme van Portici) at De Munt, the Belgian Revolution broke out. The new Damesme-building burnt down to the ground on January 21, 1855 leaving only the outside walls and portico. Under the direction of Joseph Poelaert, the current theatre was reconstructed within fourteen months in the then-popular style of Louis XVI with 1200 seats. In keeping with Damesne’s concept, the exterior revealed little of the interior’s function as an opera house. The new “Théatre Royal de la Monnaie” opened with Halévy’s Jaguarita l'Indienne. Liberty Leading the People by Eugène Delacroix commemorates the July Revolution 1830 (MDCCCXXX) was a common year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... Daniel François Esprit Auber (January 29, 1782 - May 13, 1871), French composer, the son of a Paris print-seller, was born in Caen in Normandy. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Episode of the Belgian Revolution of 1830, Egide Charles Gustave Wappers (1834), in the Musée dArt Ancien, Brussels The Belgian Revolution was a conflict in the United Kingdom of the Netherlands that began with a riot in Brussels in August 1830 and eventually led to the establishment of... January 21 is the 21st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1855 (MDCCCLV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian Calendar (or a common year starting on Saturday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ... Joseph Poelaert (21 March 1817 – 3 November 1879) was a Belgian architect. ... Jacques Fromental Halévy Jacques-François-Fromental-Élie Halévy (May 27, 1799 - March 17, 1862) was a French composer. ...

Renovations were required shortly after the opening due to faulty foundation work; the early 20th Century saw an additional story added; and in the 1950s, a new stage building was added. By 1985 it was determined that complete renovation was needed. Features such as raising the roofline by 4 metres and scooping out the stage building area (in addition to creating a steel frame strengthen the load-bearing walls and increasing backstage space) characterized this two year project. However, the red and gold auditorium remained basically the same, except that its capacity was increased to 1,770 seats. On 12th November 1986 the renovated theatre was inaugurated with a performance of Beethoven’s 9th Symphony. Year 1950 (MCML) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... A portrait by Joseph Karl Stieler, 1820 Ludwig van Beethoven (IPA: ), (baptized December 17, 1770[1] – March 26, 1827) was a German composer. ...

Direction

Music Directors of the opera have included, Corneil de Thoran from 1920 until 1953, and Antonio Pappano, who left in 2002 to be Music Director of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden in London. His successor as director of music was the Japanese conductor, Kazushi Ono, who is the current incumbent. During the 1980's the "Monnaie" was led by Gerard Mortier. The current general director of the theatre is Bernard Foccroulle, to be succeeded in 2007 by Peter de Caluwe. Corneil de Thoran (Liege, 15 January 1881-Brussels, 6 January 1953), was a Belgian musician. ... Antonio Pappano (born 30 December 1959 in London, England) is a British conductor. ... The Floral Hall of the Royal Opera House The Royal Opera House is a performing arts venue in London. ... Kazushi Ono is a Japanese conductor, born in Tokyo. ... Gérard Mortier (b. ...

External link

• La Monnaie-De Munt Official Website, in English

Coordinates: 50°50′59″N, 4°21′14″E Map of Earth showing lines of latitude (horizontally) and longitude (vertically), Eckert VI projection; large version (pdf, 1. ...