Drottningholm Palace Theatre
The Drottningholm Palace Theatre, or Drottningholms Slottsteater, is an opera house located located at Drottningholm Palace in Stockholm, Sweden. The opera house was completed in 1766, and is today run by the a private foundation, the Drottningholm Theatre Museum, and funded by government grants.
After Gustaf III's death in 1792, the theater was more or less forgotten, but it was reinvigorated in the 1920s. The theatre has since acquired a growing international reputation as a festival theater by focusing on works by Haydn, Handel, Gluck and Mozart and emphasis on authentic performance.
During the summer, a series of operas is put on in the theatre at Drottningholm. The 18th century theatre is special also because it was unused for many years, and rediscovered only in the latter part of the 20th century. Almost all of the equipment is original, and the stage is unusual for having a significantly greater depth than width. The operas are performed by musicians wearing period costume, and the orchestra performs using period or copies of authentic instruments. The stage effects include a wave machine, thunder machine, and a flying chair which is often used for deus ex machina effects. Most productions demonstrate some of the effects possible using the original equipment. Because of the possible fire hazard in the wooden building, the theatre uses electric lights, designed to flicker like candles.
In 1991, the theatre, along with with the Drottningholm Palace, the China Pavilion and the surrounding park, was added to UNESCO's list of world heritage sites. The theater was used in Ingmar Bergman's 1975 film of The Magic Flute
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