Monday 5th July
Opera Theatre Northern Foyer, Sydney Opera house
With views stretching from Farm Cove through to Rose Bay, the Opera Theatre Northern Foyer will play host to this year’s welcome reception for the Peripheral Nerve Society Conference.
This truly magnificent space at the Sydney Opera House is one of the world’s most iconic treasures and will make for an unforgettable evening.
World Heritage Listed
Sydney Opera House was inscribed in the World Heritage List in June 2007: “Sydney Opera House is a great architectural work of the 20th century. It represents multiple strands of creativity, both in architectural form and structural design, a great urban sculpture carefully set in a remarkable waterscape and a world famous iconic building.” UNESCO
The expert evaluation report to the World Heritage Committee stated: “…it stands by itself as one of the indisputable masterpieces of human creativity, not only in the 20th century but in the history of humankind.”
Design/Structure
The distinctive roof comprises sets of interlocking vaulted ‘shells’ set upon a vast terraced platform and surrounded by terrace areas that function as pedestrian concourses. The two main halls are arranged side by side, with their long axes, slightly inclined from each other, generally running north-south. The auditoria face south, away from the harbour with the stages located between the audience and the city. The Forecourt is a vast open space from which people ascend the stairs to the podium. The Monumental Steps, which lead up from the Forecourt to the two main performance venues, are a great ceremonial stairway nearly 100 metres wide.
The vaulted roof shells were designed by Utzon in collaboration with internationally renowned engineers Ove Arup & Partners with the final shape of the shells derived from the surface of a single imagined sphere. Each shell is composed of pre-cast rib segments radiating from a concrete pedestal and rising to a ridge beam. The shells are faced in glazed off-white tiles while the podium is clad in earth-toned, reconstituted granite panels. The glass walls are a special feature of the building, constructed according to the modified design by Utzon’s successor architect, Peter Hall.
History of the Design.
The history surrounding the design and construction of the building became as controversial as its design. In 1956 the NSW Government called an open-ended international design competition and appointed an independent jury. The competition brief provided broad specifications to attract the best design talent in the world; it did not specify design parameters or set a cost limit. The main requirement of the competition brief was a design for two performance halls, one for opera and one for symphony concerts. Reputedly rescued from a pile of discarded submissions, Jørn Utzon’s winning entry created great community interest and the NSW Government’s decision to commission Utzon as the sole architect was unexpected, bold and visionary.
Wednesday 7th July
McLaurin Hall, Sydney University
The University of Sydney is Australia’s oldest and most distinguished centre of higher learning
The University is a subtle amalgam of century old sandstone, innovative and contemporary architecture and is set on 72 hectares of immaculate landscaped and tree covered parkland. Within its timeless exterior you will find a range of unique, diverse and historical venues
This year’s farewell dinner will be held in the University’s Quadrangle Building.
The MacLaurin Hall is located at the south-west corner of the Quadrangle Building, diagonally opposite The Great Hall. The building continues the neo-Gothic style of the earlier buildings.
The upper floor was built to house the Fisher Library, with the reading room in the main chamber. Five floors of book stacks were originally situated in the building's northern arm, where the grand entrance stair is located. The ground floor was built for the Nicholson Museum which you will be able to discover during the pre-dinner drinks reception.
The Fisher Library moved to its current location on Eastern Avenue in 1962, and MacLaurin Hall was substantially renovated in the late 1980's to provide a spectacular venue for recitals, formal dinners and corporate gatherings.
