Sydney Opera House Turns 50
It's one of the world's most iconic buildings... and on Friday, The Sydney Opera House is celebrating 50 years since it's opening.
Thousands of people will flock to the city centre for a behind-the-scenes look at the icon.
Thousands of people will flock to the city centre for a behind-the-scenes look at the icon.
Transcript
00:00 an icon around the world and a marker of identity at home.
00:05 Half a century ago, the Sydney Opera House was unveiled by Britain's late Queen Elizabeth II.
00:11 Since then, the cells of the Opera House have been at the centre of Australian celebrations, vigils,
00:18 defining historical moments and even a naked photo shoot.
00:22 While inside has seen a lot more than opera, including rock concerts, exhibitions and theatre,
00:28 ahead of its time the iconic structure was designed by Danish architect Johan Utzon.
00:33 His design picked out of the reject pile in the design contest.
00:37 In that the judges could see the innovative design, the response to the setting on the beautiful Sydney harbour
00:45 and really what this place could be, which is a sculpture, an artwork in itself, to celebrate and house the performing arts.
00:53 The iconic structure was brought to life by the work of 10,000 labourers, including Peter Tucker.
00:58 When I was working here, it was just all scaffold, it was just all a big massive safety net that if anybody fell,
01:04 they're caught in the safety net and then all of a sudden it's all gone and there's musicians on stage and they're playing
01:11 and you say how beautiful is this coming out, you know, I've never heard a full orchestra before but wow, that was very impressive.
01:18 Construction began in 1959 with a budget of 7 million Australian dollars.
01:23 Expected to be completed by 1963, the doors weren't opened until 10 years after that, costing a staggering 102 million dollars.
01:33 By then Utzon had abandoned the project and never returned to see his masterpiece completed.
01:39 But it could have looked completely different, with 233 design entries.
01:44 Second Place was inspired by a shell, judges said this design lacked drama and there were many more ideas.
01:52 Now, celebrating its 50th anniversary, the public is invited for a behind the scenes look.
02:01 38,000 people have already registered for the weekend event featuring performances and a special light show.
02:08 It's a tremendous honour, it's a celebration and it really just defines how important this building is to this country and to the world.
02:17 And it's for everyone. I know the motto this year is the People's House, I like to call it the People's Home.
02:22 In its lifetime, the iconic building has hosted over 118,000 performances and attracts an average of 11 million visitors every year.
02:32 On its 50th birthday, the world looks at the Sydney Opera House as an embodiment of Australia.
02:38 And for Australians, the iconic structure represents a slice of home.
02:43 Alex Chen and Rosie Greninja for Taiwan Plus.
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