Queen Sofia Palace of the Arts (Valencian: Palau de les Arts Reina Sofía, Spanish: Palacio de las Artes Reina Sofía) is an opera house and cultural centre in Valencia, Spain. The theatre opened on 8 October 2005. The first opera presented, Beethoven's Fidelio, was premiered on 25 October 2006.

Administration of the company is under the leadership of Helga Schmidt, formerly from London's Royal Opera House from 1973 to 1981. Schmidt has attracted some major artists to be involved with the Palau. Among them is Zubin Mehta, who leads an annual music and opera festival, the Festival del Mediterraneo, which began in 2007; Lorin Maazel, who became music director; and Plácido Domingo, who brought his Operalia competition to the Palau in October 2007,[1] and performs there regularly (Cyrano de Bergerac in 2007, Iphigénie en Tauride in 2008, Die Walküre in 2009).

T The resident orchestra at the Queen Sophia Palace of the Arts is the Valencian Community Orchestra. The theatre's first season was dated, 2006-2007. During the first and second seasons the theatre staged seven or eight operas per season, as well as an operetta, a zarzuela, and vocal recitals. During the 2008-2009 season theatre staged seven operas and one zarzuela, in performances that mainly conducted by Lorin Maazel. Soloists included Plácido Domingo, Christopher Ventris, Vittorio Grigolo, Maria Guleghina, and Cristina Gallardo-Domâs. The 2008-2009 Festival del Mediterrani included the complete Der Ring des Nibelungen cycle conducted by Zubin Mehta, again with Plácido Domingo. The Queen Sophia company promotes symphonic concerts, opera galas, and vocal recitals.[2] The company also hosts the Centre de Perfeccionament Plácido Domingo, an advanced training program of international draw for young opera artists, named in honor of Plácido Domingo.

Queen Sophia Palace of the Arts is the final structure built of a grand City of Arts and Sciences concept designed by the Valencia-born and internationally known architect, Santiago Calatrava, which began in 1995 and it was opened on 8 October 2005.

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Ciudad de las Artes y las Ciencias

Queen Sofia Palace of the Arts