Curtain UP: Palais Garnier

Red and gold, lit by the immense crystal chandelier hanging below Marc Chagall’s brightly coloured ceiling, the Italian-style horseshoe-shaped auditorium has 1,900 red velvet seats. The magnificent painted-canvas house curtain imitates a draped curtain with gold braid and pompoms.

The Palais Garnier is the thirteenth theatre to house the Paris Opera since it was founded by Louis XIV in 1669. It was built on the orders of Napoleon III as part of the great Parisian reconstruction project carried out by Baron Haussmann. The project for an opera house was put out to competition and was won by Charles Garnier, an unknown 35-year-old architect. Building work, which lasted fifteen years, from 1860 to 1875, was interrupted by numerous incidents, including the 1870 war, the fall of the Empire and the Commune. The Palais Garnier was inaugurated on 5 January 1875.

Head to the elegant contempo restaurant after taking in this sumptuous palace. Consult your No Worries Paris guide for your next adventure. A little shopping at Galeries Lafayette perhaps or follow-up double espresso at Starbucks just up the street.