“If used in this way, the Opera House becomes a form of couch surfing, with dozy risers wandering around, disheveled. evil genius” given the Opera House’s newly minted commercial partnership with Airbnb.Ī Wollombi resident expressed strong opposition to the proposal. NSW Planning sought submissions on the proposal from 8 September to 24 October, with a former employee of Opera Australia describing it as “bold and brazen marketing” and “pure. The Opera House hosted an overnight event in conjunction with the Vivid Festival in 2016, with the Joan Sutherland Foyer and the Utzon Room kitted out with bedding for 158 guests for a performance of Max Richter’s eight-hour composition Sleep.īut there has been some opposition voiced to the perceived commercial exploitation of the Unesco world heritage-listed building, particularly given the Opera House’s corporate partnerships.

The accommodation would be “associated with special promotional events”, with a proposed schedule combining the sleepover with a Concert Hall performance a meet-and-greet with the artists (“subject to approval”) backstage and even the chance for guests to “perform own piece on the stage”.

According to the proposal submitted by urban planners JBA on behalf of the Sydney Opera House Trust last year, allowing overnight stays would be a “new and innovative” way to experience the building and “shift perspectives on a well-known public institution”.

Sydney opera house night