National Centre for the Performing Arts
Paul Andreu · Beijing, China · 2007
Paul Andreu’s National Centre for the Performing Arts is a vast ellipsoidal titanium-and-glass dome set within an artificial lake immediately west of Tiananmen Square. Visitors enter through a glazed passage beneath the water, making arrival part of a carefully staged transition from the monumental city to the performance halls inside. Opera, concert and theatre venues are grouped beneath the single shell around generous public foyers. Opened in 2007, the building is a major example of China’s turn-of-the-century investment in large cultural institutions and of architecture used as a highly visible metropolitan landmark.