The plan is to create an architecturally outstanding building that will provide the best possible conditions for the Hamburg State Opera and make this special location on the River Elbe accessible to everyone. It has been contractually agreed that the city will provide the site and carry out the necessary development work. The Kühne Foundation is to finance the construction of the opera house. Upon completion, ownership of the building will pass to the city and the Hamburg State Opera will move into its new home. The historic, listed opera house on Dammtorstraße will then be put to other cultural uses.
The Hamburg State Opera has a history stretching back centuries. The new opera house in HafenCity is intended to build on this tradition and provide the State Opera, the Hamburg Ballet and the State Philharmonic Orchestra with a new home of outstanding quality and international prestige. At the same time, the Baakenhöft is to be developed as a special venue in Hamburg and made accessible to all.
On the initiative of the art patron Klaus-Michael Kühne, the Senate, the Hamburg State Opera and the Kühne Foundation have been in close dialogue for several months regarding the construction of a new opera house. The aim is to create an architecturally outstanding building which, in this central location, will be an asset to the whole city. The Senate has selected Baakenhöft as the new site for this project. The aim here has always been to create a space that is accessible to everyone.
For the planning and construction of the opera house, the Foundation has established a company in which the city and the State Opera will hold minority shares. Building on preliminary planning based on theatre-specific expertise, an architectural selection process will first be carried out. Once the preliminary planning and a corresponding cost estimate have been finalised, the Kühne Foundation will make the final decision on whether to proceed with the construction of the opera house. The city will then undertake to make the site at Baakenhöft available for the new building and to prepare it. It will also bear the site-specific additional costs – for example, relating to foundations and flood protection – up to a maximum of 147.5 million euros. Upon completion and handover, the opera house is to be donated to the city. Responsibility for the operation of the Hamburg State Opera will remain with the city as before.
The listed opera house on Dammtorstraße will be preserved in any case and is to continue to be used for cultural purposes. Should the new building not go ahead, extensive refurbishment and modernisation of the existing building will be necessary to enable the opera to continue operating in a contemporary manner in the future.
Dr Peter Tschentscher, Mayor of Hamburg: “In Hamburg, music and culture have always been linked to civic engagement and patronage. Three hundred and fifty years ago, they also laid the foundation for the Hamburg State Opera, which today ranks among the most popular and best-known opera houses in Germany. With an outstanding opera house on the River Elbe, the State Opera, the Hamburg Ballet and the State Philharmonic Orchestra are to be given a new home that offers the best possible conditions for artists. At the same time, the new opera house will help to attractively redevelop the Baakenhöft area, with its prime location on the banks of the Elbe, and open it up to all the people of Hamburg. Together with the Kühne Foundation, we want to seize this opportunity to promote Hamburg’s culture and its international influence. I would like to thank Klaus-Michael Kühne and his foundation for this extraordinary commitment.”
Dr Carsten Brosda, Senator for Culture and Media: “Opera has a long tradition in Hamburg and is one of the city’s key pillars. A donation from the Kühne Foundation presents a unique opportunity to build a new, outstanding opera house that not only meets the standards of a venue of international standing, but also, through its location and architecture, becomes a venue for everyone. We want to seize this opportunity and, with the new opera house, lay the foundations for further cementing Hamburg’s place on the international cultural map. This is to become a venue for outstanding art that welcomes everyone! We can now build on the long tradition of the Bürgeroper and continue to write the history of opera in Hamburg. This also means that the historic site on Dammtorstraße will continue to be used for cultural purposes.”
Klaus-Michael Kühne, President of the Board of Trustees of the Kühne Foundation: “As a cosmopolitan, international, significant and culturally leading city, Hamburg would not be complete without an opera house of high international standing. I am therefore delighted to be able to realise such an ambitious project in partnership with the City of Hamburg. My Kühne Foundation aims to create a special place in HafenCity for all the people of Hamburg, where the Elbe and its harbour, the city and its culture can all be experienced in equal measure.”
Dr Jörg Dräger, Executive Director of the Kühne Foundation: “Building a new opera house is an extremely challenging project. Following intensive negotiations with the city, we are delighted to be able to get started now. The new building is intended not only to be a venue for tens of thousands of opera and ballet enthusiasts, but also to invite both residents and visitors to enjoy a spacious park area by the water.”
The City Council must still approve the agreement between the city and the Kühne Foundation. The agreement will be published on the transparency portal in due course. Further information is available at www.hamburg.de/oper.