This Thursday night, Teatro Real was honored at the International Opera Sustainability Awards, the Oscars of the opera world, for its efforts to improve the energy efficiency of the building’s roof and interior and reduce its carbon footprint. Justin Way, production director at the Royal Theatre, expressed his gratitude on receiving the award, saying: “This is not only a recognition of what we have achieved, but also a benchmark for sustainability and motivation to move forward with even more energy and dedication”, a recognition shared by all opera houses “as we all move forward to build a better future”.
The International Opera Awards were created by a British magazine. opera Teatro Real already had an excellent reputation in previous editions. In 2021, our 2019 season program was recognized as the Grand Prix of these awards: Best Company in the World. Furthermore, in 2022, it will become the first venue outside of London to host the trophy presentation ceremony.
The award was announced at a ceremony at the Greek National Opera House, attended by Mr. Wei, General Secretary Enrique Koler, Director of Infrastructure and General Services Nuria Gallego, as well as representatives of the Royal Opera House, who received the award from Sofia Dimza, Director of Corporate Affairs and Communications of the PPC Group.
Since 2019, Teatro Real has been developing an energy optimization project called “Most Sustainable Theater”, aiming for a building with almost zero energy consumption. Earlier this year, with funding from the European Next Generation Fund, the building debuted a sky-facing “fifth façade” – a cover of photovoltaic panels that you can walk through. The Madrid building is the first cultural heritage site (BIC) in Spain to receive an energy certificate.
This recognition also cements the upward trajectory of the Colosseum, which emerged in 1997 after a 70-year hiatus while remaining closed, and will require barely 30 years to catch up with such great houses as New York’s Metropolitan, Milan’s La Scala and London’s Royal Opera House. Already upon its reopening, after costly restoration works to install modern machinery, the institution demonstrated its commitment to investing in cutting-edge technology.
Other contenders to compete with the Royal Opera House in this category were the Wuppertal Opera (Germany), the Santa Fe Opera (USA), the Vienna Folk Opera (Austria), the Longborough Festival (UK), and the Leipzig Opera (Germany).
In other categories, Teatro Real also won in the Best New Works category. Mr. Brusek’s excursion, Written by Robert Carsen, co-produced with the Brno National Theater and the Berlin State Opera.
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