Wexford Opera House World Class

Wexford Opera House is “World-Class” say Royal Institute of British Architects

The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) has announced Wexford Opera House as one of its illustrious recipients of a 2009 RIBA award. The annual award honours architectural standards of excellence, primarily in the U.K, listing only six buildings in their international section as worthy of the prize.

 

 

 

Wexford Opera House is “World-Class” say Royal Institute of British Architects

 (Friday, May 22, 2009) The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) has announced Wexford Opera House as one of its illustrious recipients of a 2009 RIBA award. The annual award honours architectural standards of excellence, primarily in the U.K, listing only six buildings in their international section as worthy of the prize.

The RIBA Jury noted in their report, “essentially this building (Wexford Opera House) is a triumph for its dedicated client group (Wexford Festival Trust), for the town of Wexford, and for Ireland and for the world of music. The critics of the international opera have yet to give their verdict, but one suspects that the technical acoustical and design team have delivered a small but perfectly formed operatic masterpiece.”

Nestled amongst the narrow streets of Wexford Town in the South East of Ireland on the former site of the Theatre Royal,  Wexford Opera House is a state-of-the-art, multi-purpose, performing arts institution, which blends organically into its surroundings and boasts panoramic views of Wexford town and far beyond and is home to the internationally acclaimed Wexford Opera Festival, this year celebrating its 58th season.

Wexford Opera House runs year-round as a cultural institution with a full programme of events on a local, national and international scale. The building was completed on time and on budget at an overall cost of €33 million, €26 million of which was funded by the Department of Arts, Sports and Tourism.

Also named in the award, London-based Keith Williams of Keith Williams Architects, lead nominee for the award and associate architect of the project, is understandably thrilled about this prestigious nod, “I have always felt Wexford’s new Opera House to have been an outstanding achievement and I am naturally delighted that this has resulted in the accolade of a RIBA (Royal Institute of British Architects) Award.” 

Ciaran McGahon lead architect with the Irish Government’s Office of Public Works, which, in conjunction with Keith Williams Architects designed the building and project managed its construction, was also overjoyed with the news of this honour, saying, "The success of the project in winning this prestigious award demonstrates the high design standards to which OPW Architectural Services operates. It also proves that high quality design is compatible with modest budgets. Frank Lloyd Wright, in a lecture in London in 1939, said; 'The purpose of Architecture is to create optimism and to raise man's spirit'; we believe the new Opera House, and the Festival's great work presented in it, does both of these things, reminding us of the value of art in these challenging times. We are very proud to have been able to assist in realising WFO's long time dream of creating Ireland's first purpose built opera house"

Since opening, tours of Wexford Opera House have been available to the public and have proven extremely popular with tourists and locals alike. Any one wishing to get more information on or experience this internationally recognised cultural venue, and the many events it presents, should log onto: www.wexfordoperahouse.com or phone Wexford Opera House box-office on +353 (0)53 912 2144.

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Elizabeth Rose-Browne

Media Relations Manager

Wexford Opera House

+353 87 211 6903

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Gerry Lundberg PR

+353 87 259 1070

+353 86 259 1070

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