Theatre · Belfast, Northern Ireland
Grand Opera House
A Victorian theatre by Frank Matcham in the heart of Belfast.
The Grand Opera House on Great Victoria Street is Belfast's grand Victorian theatre, designed by the celebrated theatre architect Frank Matcham and opened on 23 December 1895. Its ornate red-brick and cream frontage, topped with domed turrets, fronts an auditorium of about 1,050 seats that the Theatres Trust regards as probably the finest surviving UK example of the oriental style applied to theatre design.
The theatre reopened after restoration in 1980, and in 2020–21 a £12.2 million project restored the auditorium and remodelled its foyers and bars. Today it stages touring musicals, drama, ballet, opera and comedy, and its annual pantomime remains its most popular show.
Highlights
- Frank Matcham's richly decorated oriental-style auditorium
- Victorian facade with domed turrets
- Annual pantomime tradition since 1895
- Touring West End musicals, ballet and opera
