Westminster City Council has approved plans to ‘Open Up’ London’s Royal Opera House from architecture firm Stanton Williams.

In collaboration with Arup, Stanton Williams will transform the Royal Opera House (ROH), with the key aims of making it more accessible to the public, promoting ease of circulation and improving way-finding in the building.

Alan Stanton, director at Stanton Williams, said: “We want to bring a sense of the magic that is created each night on stage to the open public spaces for all to enjoy. We are delighted that the project can now move forward.”

The plans include:

• Opening up the main foyer at ground level, creating a more accessible visitor experience

• Redesigning the Linbury Studio Theatre

• Creating a glazed terrace at the amphitheatre level, allowing space for extra covers in the restaurant and a visual link with Covent Garden Piazza below

• A new staircase connecting the main foyer with to another hall, with an escalator up to amphitheatre level

• A new glazed entrance will be created on the Bow Street facade, this will make the ROH’s street presence more obvious and allow passers-by to glean what’s going on inside

The project will have further internal repercussions, there will be accessible spaces for exhibitions, education, events and an enhanced F&B offering.

Work is expected to start on site in the last quarter of 2015; as the main auditorium remains untouched the performance schedules for the ROH will not be affected. The project will take around two years to complete.

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