Novosibirsk Opera and Ballet Theatre

The largest opera house in Russia, with internationally recognised ballet and opera companies

The Novosibirsk Opera and Ballet Theatre — known locally simply as NOVAT — is the largest opera house in Russia and one of the most distinctive pieces of architecture in Siberia. The dome, which spans 60 metres, was the largest in the Soviet Union when it was completed, and the building as a whole is a monumental statement of Soviet cultural ambition planted emphatically in the middle of the Asian continent.

The companies inside have long outgrown any regional label. The ballet company in particular has trained generations of dancers and performed internationally at a level that puts it alongside the Bolshoi and Kirov. If you are in Novosibirsk, go to a performance — tickets are cheap by any international standard, the repertoire is solid, and the building is worth seeing from inside. Book ahead for popular productions; the box office also takes walk-up tickets on the day.

things to do sight architecture
A story
Construction began in 1931 but was halted repeatedly — once because the building was so massive it started sinking into the Siberian permafrost. The engineers solved this by installing a heated foundation that keeps the ground from freezing unevenly beneath the enormous weight. During World War II the unfinished building was used to store artworks evacuated from Leningrad and Moscow, including paintings from the Hermitage, while the construction continued around the crates. It finally opened in 1945.