Norwegian Opera & Ballet
The light that follows the wave without ever betraying it
In Bjørvika, Oslo’s old harbour area, the Den Norske Opera og Ballett overlooks the fjord with a white marble façade. Opened in 2008, it is a building you can walk through even without going to the theatre: the sloping roof has become a public square. Inside, in the main auditorium, curved wooden panels envelop the audience, forming a shape that resembles a still wave.
Lighting the wood without the light being visible
Multiconsult and NSE, who were responsible for the lighting design, had a specific constraint to work within: to highlight that wooden surface without the light being visible. The beam had to skim the wood, following its grain and contours, whilst remaining invisible to the audience during the performance.
The solution: custom Cometa LC
The choice fell on Cometa LC, DGA’s linear profile, adapted for this venue: a louvre to control glare and longer-than-usual brackets, designed to meet the structure’s mounting constraints.
Anyone looking at the walls sees only the wood moving, curve after curve — the light accompanies it without ever interrupting it. Here, as in the rest of the building, the light works for the architecture: not to draw attention to itself.
Project: Den Norske Opera og Ballett (Norwegian Opera & Ballet)
Location: Oslo, Norway
Client: Statsbygg
Lighting Design: Multiconsult AS, NSE
Installation: Datelco AS
Photographer: Tomasz Majewski
DGA product: Cometa LC in a special version
