BIG’s Terraced Vision for Hamburg Opera

Selected through an international competition, the new Hamburg State Opera on the Baakenhoft peninsula introduces a contemporary home for opera and ballet shaped as a coastal topography. The 45,000 m² project by BIG – Bjarke Ingels Group replaces the 1950s opera house with a walkable landscape where architecture, public life, and harbor ecology merge.

Terraced Opera as Urban Landscape

BIG structures the opera as a series of concentric terraces radiating from the main hall like expanding soundwaves. These stepped forms descend toward the waterfront, turning the building into a publicly accessible terraced landscape. Visitors can climb the roof and observe long views across the Baakenhoft peninsula, Lohse Park, and the historic port.

A Three-Dimensional Public Park

The project extends the waterfront promenade upward, creating a continuous public roofscape. People may enter from multiple directions—park, quay, pier, or the elevated street—finding indoor foyers that flow seamlessly into outdoor decks. Stone paving continues from outside into the foyer, reinforcing the idea of an open urban living room.

Backstage areas become partially visible through the stepped exterior, revealing fragments of daily opera-making and avoiding the typical “closed box” feeling.

Inside the Concentric Performance Hall

At the heart of the project lies a main hall wrapped in curved timber rings. The geometry supports clear sightlines and state-of-the-art acoustics. The layout minimizes distance between performers and audience, creating intimacy within a large civic room.

Supporting functions—including the studio stage, rehearsal rooms, and technical areas—are positioned directly behind the main stage for efficient production flows, supporting both the Hamburg State Opera and the Hamburg Ballet.

Ecology and Resilience on the Elbe

BIG Landscape designs the harbor edge as a layered system of terraces, dunes, and wetland gardens. These elements slow, filter, and retain stormwater while expanding habitats for local plant and animal species. The opera becomes a resilient waterfront park that adapts to rising tides and heavy rain, strengthening the connection between culture and coastal ecology.

In its final form, the New Hamburg State Opera by
BIG – Bjarke Ingels Group will serve as both a performing arts center and a public destination along the Elbe. Developed through an international competition for the Hamburg State Opera, the project positions Hamburg at the intersection of culture, landscape, and urban transformation.