Hammerstein's Roof Garden (1899–1915) was the official name of the semi-outdoor vaudeville venue that theatre magnate, Oscar Hammerstein I , built atop the Victoria Theatre and the neighboring Theatre Republic , commonly known then as the Belasco Theatre. Unlike Hammerstein’s first roof garden theatre, which crowned his failed Olympia Theatre , the Paradise Roof Garden was able to rise to prominence and contend with its rivals for the better parts of two decades. For New York City theatre-goers, the name Hammerstein’s grew to encompass both the Victoria and its roof garden. From 1904 to 1914 it was run by Willie Hammerstein , who put on highly popular vaudeville acts.
30-677: The construction of the Victoria suffered from an anemic budget, and as a result, its roof garden developed incrementally. It opened in 1899 as the Venetian Terrace Roof Garden and featured a “‘grand promenade’ in the style of Monte Carlo .” The middle of its three tiers consisted of boxes; the third, an open-air café. In compliance with the city’s building code, Hammerstein added eight exits and two elevators to his “solid steel and concrete construction” before summer season of 1902 commenced. He also gained permission to install
60-451: A nymph . The first opera performed there was Robert Planquette 's Le Chevalier Gaston on 8 February 1879, followed by three additional operas in the first season. With the influence of the first director, Jules Cohen (who was instrumental in bringing Adelina Patti ) and the fortunate combination of Raoul Gunsbourg , the new director from 1892, and Princess Alice , the opera-loving American wife of Charles III's successor, Albert I ,
90-530: A German-style casino. The initial casino opened in La Condamine in 1862, but was unsuccessful. It relocated several times, before reaching its present location in the "Les Spélugues" (The Caves) area of Monte Carlo. Success came slowly, largely because Monaco was inaccessible from much of Europe. The railway, installed in 1868, brought with it an influx of people, and Monte Carlo grew in wealth. Saint-Charles Church on Monte Carlo's Avenue Sainte-Charles
120-492: A garden courtyard, add a new spa, fitness and pool area, exceptional suites, and a “rooftop villa” with a private garden and pool. Monte Carlo has been the setting of many films, books, television shows, and video games. James Bond 007: Blood Stone features a level set in Monte Carlo Monaco's twin cities are: Op%C3%A9ra de Monte-Carlo The Opéra de Monte-Carlo is an opera house which
150-498: A performance by Sarah Bernhardt dressed as a nymph. The first opera performed there was Robert Planquette 's Le Chevalier Gaston on 8 February 1879, and that was followed by three more in the first season. Other famous twentieth-century singers to appear at Monte Carlo included Titta Ruffo , Geraldine Farrar , Mary Garden , Tito Schipa , Beniamino Gigli , Claudia Muzio , Georges Thill , and Lily Pons . The Hôtel de Paris, established in 1864 by Charles III of Monaco ,
180-455: A roof that could open or close to accommodate the weather. The bulk of the theatre rested over the Victoria, leaving the roof of the Belasco free for novelty features, including a pond, a Dutch-style dairy farm, and a windmill. The “Mute Revue” consisted of garden displays that paid tribute to the theatrical hits of the closing season. Just in time for the opening of the summer season of 1907,
210-876: Is a popular tax haven for many tennis professionals and home to many active and retired athletes. Monte Carlo is host to most of the Circuit de Monaco , on which the Formula One Monaco Grand Prix takes place. It also hosts world championship boxing bouts, the European Poker Tour Grand Final and the World Backgammon Championship as well as the Monaco International Auto Show (Fr: Salon International de l'Automobile de Monaco ), fashion shows and other events. Although
240-576: Is an official administrative area of Monaco , specifically the ward of Monte Carlo/Spélugues, where the Monte Carlo Casino is located. Informally, the name also refers to a larger district, the Monte Carlo Quarter (corresponding to the former municipality of Monte Carlo), which besides Monte Carlo/Spélugues also includes the wards of La Rousse/Saint Roman , Larvotto/Bas Moulins and Saint Michel . The permanent population of
270-578: Is divided into 9 wards, which are grouped into 4 quartiers. The quarter of Monte Carlo was served by tramways from 1898 to 1931. It linked all parts of Monaco ( see transportation in Monaco ). In 2003 a new cruise ship pier was completed in the harbour at Monte Carlo. Monte Carlo has an area of 28.14 hectares (or 0.28 square kilometers ) and faces the Mediterranean Sea , bordered to the west by Ravin de Sainte-Dévote and La Condamine, and to
300-783: Is located on the west side of the Place du Casino in the heart of Monte Carlo. It belongs to the Société des bains de mer de Monaco (SBM), and is part of the elite Palace Grand Hotels in Monaco with the Hotel Hermitage , the Monte-Carlo Beach Hotel , Monte-Carlo Bay Hotel & Resort , the Hotel Metropole and Fairmont hotel. The hotel has 106 rooms divided into four groups based on type of view, decoration and luxury. The Exclusive City View offers 20 rooms,
330-491: Is part of the Monte Carlo Casino located in the Principality of Monaco . With the lack of cultural diversions available in Monaco in the 1870s, Prince Charles III , along with the Société des bains de mer , decided to include a concert hall as part of the casino . The main public entrance to the hall was from the casino, while Charles III's private entrance was on the western side. It opened in 1879 and became known as
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#1732765660172360-657: The Monte Carlo Masters tennis tournament is billed as taking place in the community, its actual location is in the adjacent French commune of Roquebrune-Cap-Martin . The Monte Carlo Rally is one of the longest running and most respected car rallies ; from 1973 to 2008 and again from 2012, it marks the start of World Rally Championship season, having also served as the curtain-raiser for the Intercontinental Rally Challenge between 2009 and 2011. The rally, however, takes place outside
390-567: The Monte-Carlo Bay Hotel & Resort . At the quarter's eastern border, one crosses into the French town of Beausoleil (sometimes referred to as Monte-Carlo-Supérieur), and 8 kilometres (5 mi) to its east is the western border of Italy . In 1856, Charles III of Monaco granted a concession to Napoleon Langlois and Albert Aubert , to establish a sea-bathing facility for the treatment of various diseases, and to build
420-695: The Paris opera house now known as the Palais Garnier . The Salle Garnier is much smaller, seating 524, compared to about 2,000 for the Palais Garnier, and unlike the Paris theatre, which was started in 1861 and only completed in 1875, the Salle Garnier was constructed in only eight and a half months. Nevertheless, its ornate style was heavily influenced by that of the Palais Garnier, and many of
450-546: The Prince's Palace , all of which are in Monaco-Ville . The Opéra de Monte-Carlo or Salle Garnier was built to designs of the architect Charles Garnier , who also designed the Paris opera house now known as the Palais Garnier . Although much smaller, the Salle Garnier is very similar in style with decorations in red and gold, and frescoes and sculptures all around the auditorium. It was inaugurated on 25 January 1879 with
480-613: The Salle Garnier , after the architect Charles Garnier , who designed it. During the renovation of the Salle Garnier in 2004–05, the company presented operas at the Salle des Princes in the local Grimaldi Forum , a modern conference and performance facility where Les Ballets de Monte Carlo and the Monte-Carlo Philharmonic Orchestra regularly perform. The architect Charles Garnier also designed
510-617: The gambling center ... that has made Monte Carlo an international byword for the extravagant display and reckless dispersal of wealth". It is also the location of the Hôtel de Paris , Café de Paris and Salle Garnier (the casino theatre which is the home of the Opéra de Monte-Carlo ). The quarter's eastern part includes the community of Larvotto with Monaco's only public beach, as well as its new convention center (the Grimaldi Forum ), and
540-1034: The Monte Carlo Opera from 1895 to 1903. By the early years of the twentieth century, the Salle Garnier was to see such great performers as Nellie Melba and Enrico Caruso in La bohème and Rigoletto (in 1902), and Feodor Chaliapin in the premiere of Jules Massenet 's Don Quichotte (1910). This production formed part of a long association between the company and Massenet and his operas, two of which were presented there posthumously. Other famous twentieth-century singers to appear at Monte Carlo included Titta Ruffo , Geraldine Farrar , Mary Garden , Tito Schipa , Beniamino Gigli , Claudia Muzio , Georges Thill , Lily Pons , and Mary McCormic . Apart from Massenet, composers whose works had their first performances at Monte Carlo included Saint-Saëns ( Hélène , 1904), Mascagni ( Amica , 1905), and Puccini ( La rondine , 1917). Indeed, since its inauguration,
570-598: The Monte Carlo quarter and is run mostly on French roads. Monte Carlo has been visited by royalty as well as the public and movie stars for decades. Monte Carlo is one of Europe's leading tourist resorts , although many of the key tourist destinations are in other parts of Monaco, including such attractions as Monaco Cathedral , the Napoleon Museum , the Oceanographic Museum and aquarium, and
600-507: The Opéra was transformed into a spectacular venue to host gala-dinners. The first occasion was in 1966 for the celebration of centenary of Monte-Carlo hosted by Grace Kelly and Rainier III; the second was for the royal wedding of Prince Albert II and Princess Charlene . The Opéra was transformed for the third time on 27 July 2013 to host the Love Ball , a fundraising gala event organised by
630-624: The Superior Courtyard has 29 large rooms, the Exclusive Sea View 59 and the Exclusive Casino has six. Additionally, there are 74 suites and junior suites which are grouped similarly, offering more luxury than the rooms. There are single and double suites as well as courtyard junior suites and Sea/Casino Junior suites. There is also one Presidential suite. In October 2014, a renovation project began, to create
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#1732765660172660-585: The company was thrust onto the world's opera community stage. Gunsbourg remained for sixty years, overseeing such premiere productions as Hector Berlioz 's La damnation de Faust in 1893, and the first appearances in January 1894 of the heroic Italian tenor Francesco Tamagno in Verdi 's Otello , whose title role he had created for the opera's premiere in Italy. Conductor Arturo Vigna served as music director of
690-439: The east by La Rousse and Larvotto. Monte Carlo has a hot-summer Mediterranean climate ( Köppen climate classification : Csa), which is influenced by oceanic climate and humid subtropical climate . As a result, it has warm, dry summers and mild, rainy winters. Monte Carlo is home to an ATP Masters 1000 tennis tournament during the clay court season usually played during the end of March through mid to late April. Monte Carlo
720-446: The entire venue was upgraded: the house was repainted in white and blue with splashes of red, and the boxes were remodeled and decked with geraniums. In addition to entertainment, the open-air Paradise Roof Garden offered patrons escape from the city’s oppressive summer heat. The table-and-chair seating configuration encouraged conversation in a house that was vulnerable to sunlight and outside noise; simple, wordless variety entertainment
750-399: The same artists worked on both theatres, including Gustave Boulanger . Although the Monte Carlo theatre was not originally intended for opera, it was soon used frequently for that purpose and was remodeled in 1898–99 by Henri Schmit, primarily in the stage area, to make it more suitable for opera. The hall was inaugurated on 25 January 1879 with a performance by Sarah Bernhardt dressed as
780-592: The selling of the Victoria in 1915, the roof garden closed as well. 40°45′24″N 73°59′12″W / 40.756761°N 73.986528°W / 40.756761; -73.986528 Monte Carlo Monte Carlo ( / ˌ m ɒ n t i ˈ k ɑːr l oʊ / MON -tee KAR -loh , Italian: [ˈmonte ˈkarlo] ; French : Monte-Carlo , French: [mɔ̃te kaʁlo] ; or colloquially Monte-Carl , French: [mɔ̃te kaʁl] ; Monégasque : Munte Carlu , Ligurian: [ˈmuŋte ˈkaɾlu] ; lit. ' Mount Charles ' )
810-470: The theatre has hosted 45 world premiere productions of operas. René Blum was retained to found the Ballets Russes de Monte-Carlo . The "Golden Age" of the Salle Garnier has passed, since small companies with small houses are not able to mount highly expensive productions. Nonetheless, the present day company still presents a season containing five or six operas. Three times in its 130-year history
840-549: The ward of Monte Carlo is about 3,500, while that of the quarter is about 15,000. Monaco has four traditional quarters. From west to east they are: Fontvieille (the newest), Monaco-Ville (the oldest), La Condamine , and Monte Carlo. Monte Carlo is situated on a prominent escarpment at the base of the Maritime Alps along the French Riviera . Near the quarter's western end is the "world-famous Place du Casino,
870-475: Was completed in 1883. It was restored in its centenary year. The municipality of Monte Carlo was created in 1911, when the constitution divided the principality of Monaco into three municipalities. Monte Carlo encompassed the existing neighborhoods of La Rousse/Saint Roman, Larvotto/Bas Moulins, and Saint Michel. The municipalities merged in 1917, after accusations that the government used them to "divide and conquer". Since then, they became wards . Today, Monaco
900-434: Was well suited to such conditions. Some of the “dumb acts” that played on the roof included Barnold’s Dog and Monkey Pantomime Company, and wire-walker Bird Millman ; in fact, William Glackens ’s painting, titled simply Hammerstein’s Roof Garden , depicts such an act. As advancements in air-conditioning were rendering New York’s roof garden theatres obsolete, silent movies were luring patrons out of vaudeville theatres. With
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