Danish architect Jørn Utzon designed it in 1957, to look like sails on a boat in the harbor. Construction was approved the following year, and the complex opened in stages, delayed because the materials necessary to sustain the design proved hard to determine.
The first person to perform at the Sydney Opera House site was Paul Robeson: The African-American football player-turned-lawyer-turned-singer-turned-actor sang his signature song, "Ol' Man River," to construction workers as they ate lunch in 1960. The formal opening was on October 20, 1973, dedicated by Australia's head of state, Queen Elizabeth II. The opening was televised and included fireworks and a performance of Ludwig van Beethoven's 1824 Symphony No. 9.
The complex includes the Concert Hall, seating 2,679, home of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra; the Joan Sutherland Theatre, seating 1,507, named for the country's most beloved opera singer, home of Opera Australia and The Australian Ballet; the Drama Theatre, seating 544, used by the Sydney Theatre Company; the Playhouse, seating 398; the Studio, seating 280; the Utzon Room, a small multi-purpose venue for parties, corporate functions and small productions, such as chamber music performances; the Recording Studio; and the Outdoor Forecourt: A flexible open-air venue with a wide range of configuration options, including the possibility of utilizing the Monumental Steps as audience seating, used for a range of community events and major outdoor performances.
The Concert Hall
The building is managed by the Sydney Opera House Trust, an agency of the New South Wales State Government.
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October 20, 1973 was a Saturday. This was also the day of "The Saturday Night Massacre," a scandal within the larger Watergate scandal that would force the resignation of the President of the United States, Richard Nixon, 10 months later. It was also the day that The Six Million Dollar Man premiered on ABC, starring Lee Majors as astronaut-turned-bionic-federal-agent Steve Austin. (Definitely not to be confused with the Stone Cold "professional wrestler" using the same name.)
Among the major college football games played that day were these:
* Number 1 Ohio State beat Indiana, 37-7 at Memorial Stadium in Bloomington, Indiana.
* Rivalry: Number 2 Alabama beat Number 10 Tennessee, 42-21 at Legion Field in Birmingham.
* Number 3 Oklahoma beat Number 16 Colorado, 34-7 at Owen Field in Norman, Oklahoma.
* Number 4 Michigan beat Wisconsin, 35-6 at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor.
* Number 5 Penn State beat Syracuse, 49-6 at Archbold Stadium in Syracuse, New York.
* Number 6 University of Southern California (USC) beat Oregon, 31-10 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.
* Number 7 Missouri beat Oklahoma State, 13-9 at Faurot Field in Columbia, Missouri.
* Number 8 Notre Dame beat Army, 62-3 at Michie Stadium in West Point, New York.
* Number 9 Louisiana State University (LSU) beat Kentucky, 28-21 at Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
* Number 11 Nebraska beat Number 18 Kansas, 10-9 at Memorial Stadium in Lincoln, Nebraska.
* One ranked team lost to an unranked team: Number 19 Arizona lost to Texas Tech, 31-17 at Arizona Stadium in Tucson.
* Rivalry: Virginia Tech beat Virginia, 27-15 at Lane Stadium in Blacksburg, Virginia.
* Rivalry: Minnesota beat Iowa, 31-23 at Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City.
* Rivalry: Texas beat Arkansas, 34-6 at Razorback Stadium in Fayetteville, Arkansas.
* Navy beat Air Force, 42-6 at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis, Maryland.
* Yale beat Columbia, 29-0 at Baker Field in Upper Manhattan.
* Rutgers beat Delaware, 24-7 at Rutgers Stadium in Piscataway, New Jersey.
* Princeton beat Colgate, 37-21 at Palmer Stadium in Princeton, New Jersey.
There were no NFL games played that day. But a very big baseball game was played at the Oakland Coliseum: Game 6 of the World Series.
The New York Mets just need to win 1 of the last 2 games against the Oakland Athletics in Oakland, and they will have their 2nd World Championship in 5 seasons -- it has been 11 years since the Yankees went all the way. And Tom Seaver, "The Franchise," is on the mound. What can go wrong?
This can go wrong: Met manager Yogi Berra has sent Seaver out on just 3 days' rest, hoping that "Tom Terrific" can close out the defending World Champions on their own patch, so that no Game 7 will be necessary.
But Reggie Jackson, not yet a New York baseball legend, hits 2 doubles, scores 1 run and knocks in 2. Jim "Catfish" Hunter, also a future Hall-of-Famer and a future New York baseball legend, pitches brilliantly. The A's beat the Mets 3-1. So there will be a Game 7 tomorrow.
To this day, many Met fans are angry at Yogi for starting Seaver on short rest. I'm sure some of them thought of Yogi as a Yankee and hated him for that reason alone. They shouldn't: There are only 5 human beings who have managed the Mets to a Pennant: Yogi, Gil Hodges, Davey Johnson, Bobby Valentine and Terry Collins. And only Johnson, Valentine and Collins are still alive.
There are 8 National Basketball Association games played on this day:
* The New York Knicks do not play like defending World Champions, losing to the Chicago Bulls, 85-69 at Madison Square Garden. Indeed, in the other 7 NBA games played that day, only 1 other team scored fewer than the Bulls' 85, but that 85 was enough to win this game.
* The Capital Bullets play their 1st home game after 10 years in Baltimore, at the Cole Field House on the campus of the University of Maryland, in College Park, just inside the Capital Beltway. At this point, the Bullets are one of the better teams in the NBA, and they prove it, beating the Boston Celtics 96-87. Phil Chenier leads all scorers with 26 points.
It will take until December 2 for their new arena, the Capital Centre in Landover, on the other side of the Beltway, to be ready for the Bullets to play there. They then changed their name to the Washington Bullets. The following season, it also became home to an NHL expansion team, the Washington Capitals. In 1997, both teams would move into a new arena in the District of Columbia, now known as the Capital One Arena, and the Bullets would change their name to the Washington Wizards.
* The Buffalo Braves beat the Philadelphia 76ers, 116-100 at The Spectrum in Philadelphia.
* The Phoenix Suns beat the Atlanta Hawks, 118-108 at The Omni in Atlanta.
* The Milwaukee Bucks beat the Cleveland Cavaliers, 101-88 at the Cleveland Arena.
* The Golden State Warriors beat the Kansas City Kings, 100-81 at the Oakland Coliseum Arena (now the Oracle Arena).
* The Detroit Pistons beat the Houston Rockets, 107-104 at the Hofheinz Pavilion (now the Fertitta Center) in Houston.
* And the Portland Trail Blazers beat their regional rivals, the Seattle SuperSonics, 123-108 at the Portland Memorial Coliseum.
There were 3 games played in the American Basketball Association:
The Virginia Squires beat the Utah Stars, 106-95 at The Scope in Norfolk.
* The Carolina Cougars beat the Kentucky Colonels, 105-102 at Freedom Hall in Louisville.
* And the San Antonio Spurs beat the Indiana Pacers, 92-66 at the HemisFair Arena in San Antonio.
There were 6 games played in the National Hockey League:
* The New York Rangers lost to the Toronto Maple Leafs, 3-2 at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto.
* The New York Islanders lost to the Buffalo Sabres, 2-1 at the Nassau Coliseum.
* The Atlanta Flames beat the Montreal Canadiens, 4-2 at the Montreal Forum.
* The Pittsburgh Penguins beat the California Golden Seals, 5-3 at the Civic Arena in Pittsburgh.
* The St. Louis Blues and the Minnesota North Stars played to a 4-4 tie, at the Metropolitan Sports Center in the Minneapolis suburb of Bloomington, Minnesota.
* And the Los Angeles Kings beat the Philadelphia Flyers, 3-0 at The Forum in the Los Angeles suburb of Inglewood, California.
There were 3 games played in the World Hockey Association:
* The New York Golden Blades lost to the Quebec Nordiques, 8-1 at Le Colisee de Quebec.
* The Cleveland Crusaders beat the Toronto Toros, 6-4 at the Cleveland Arena, which also hosted a Cavs game that day.
* And the Vancouver Blazers beat the Chicago Cougars, 4-3 at the Pacific Coliseum in Vancouver.
In notable college football games played that day:
* Number 1 Ohio State beat Indiana, 37-7 at Memorial Stadium in Bloomington, Indiana.
* In their traditional 3rd Saturday in October meeting, Number 2 Alabama beat Number 10 Tennessee, 42-21 at Legion Field in Birmingham.
* Number 3 Oklahoma also beat a ranked opponent, Number 16 Colorado, 34-7 at Owen Field in Norman, Oklahoma.
* Number 4 Michigan beat Wisconsin, 35-6 at Michigan Stadium in the Detroit suburb of Ann Arbor.
* Number 5 Penn State beat Syracuse, 49-6 at Archbold Stadium in Syracuse.
* Number 11 Notre Dame beat Army, 62-3 at Michie Stadium in West Point, New York. Army hadn't beaten Notre Dame since 1958, and still hasn't, losing 15 games over those 63 years.
* In New Jersey, Rutgers beat the University of Delaware, 24-7 at the old Rutgers Stadium in Piscataway.
* Princeton beat Colgate, 37-21 at Palmer Stadium in Princeton, New Jersey.
* And New York City's only major team of the time, Columbia University, lost to Yale, 29-0 at Baker Field.
Also, what would become my high school, East Brunswick in Middlesex County, New Jersey, beat New Brunswick, 41-0 at Memorial Stadium in New Brunswick.
And Arsenal drew 1-1 with Ipswich Town at Highbury.
