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Teatro di San Carlo, Italy -

Naples' magnificent Teatro di San Carlo is the oldest continuously active venue for opera in the world, having opened in 1737.

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Palais Garnier, France -

The setting for Gaston Leroux's 1910 novel 'The Phantom of the Opera,' the ornate Palais Garnier was completed in 1875 for the Paris Opera at the behest of Emperor Napoleon III. (Photo: Flickr/CC BY-NC 2.0)

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Musikverein, Austria -

Familiar to millions of television viewers as the venue for the annual Vienna New Year's Concert, the Musikverein concert hall dates back to 1870. The superb acoustics of the "Great Hall" (Großer Saal) place it among the finest concert halls in the world. (Photo: Flickr/CC BY-NC 2.0)

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Shakespeare's Globe, England -

Shakespeare's Globe is a reconstruction of the Globe Theatre, an Elizabethan playhouse for which William Shakespeare wrote his plays. The original theater was built in 1599 and demolished in 1644. What you see today is an authentic copy of the venue as it would have looked in the 17th century.

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Bolshoi Theatre, Russia -

The Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow is home to the Bolshoi Ballet and Bolshoi Opera—among the oldest and most renowned ballet and opera companies in the world. The venue was opened in 1825 and has hosted many historic premieres, including Tchaikovsky's 'The Voyevoda' and 'Mazeppa.'

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Urania National Film Theatre, Hungary -

Constructed as a cabaret and concert hall by the German-born architect Henrik Schmahl in 1896, today this Budapest cultural landmark serves as a the National Film Theatre.

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Palau de la Música Catalana, Spain -

Designed in the Catalan modernista style by the architect Lluís Domènech i Montaner, Barcelona's early 20th-century Palau is a rich decoration of floral and other organic motifs set within a colorful and curvaceous interior.

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Margravial Opera House, Germany -

This absolute gem of Baroque opera house located in the town of Bayreuth features a glittering interior of gilded wood preserved in its original mid-18th century condition.

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Harbin Opera House, China -

The extraordinary Harbin Opera House in Harbin, Heilongjiang Province is clad entirely in white aluminium panels. Designed by architect Ma Yansong and inaugurated in 2015, its swirling and curling layout lends the building a fluid and sinewy look.

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Amazon Theatre, Brazil -

Vogue magazine has described the Amazon Theatre as one of the most beautiful opera houses in the world. It's certainly one of the most incongruous, located as it is in Manaus, in the heart of the Amazon rain forest. Photo: Wikimedia/CC BY-SA 4.0)

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Harpa, Iceland -

The exterior of Reykjavík's Harpa concert hall turns heads for its distinctive colored glass facade inspired by the basalt landscape of Iceland. The Icelandic Opera performs here, though the venue is primarily designed to host contemporary music concerts.

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Odeon of Herodes Atticus, Greece -

The evocative ruins of this stone Roman theater form part of the Odeon of Herodes Atticus, located on the slopes of the Acropolis of Athens. Dating back to 161 CE, this is the main venue of the Athens Festival. Musicians including Frank Sinatra, Sting, and Patti Smith have performed here. (Photo: Flickr/CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

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Auditorio de Tenerife, Spain -

Designed by architect Santiago Calatrava and opened in 2003, this modern auditorium is one of the most emblematic buildings of Spanish architecture. The building is famous for its great arc, seen here from an oblique perspective. (Photo: Wikimedia/CC BY-SA 3.0)

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Elgin and Winter Garden Theatre Centre, Canada -

The Elgin and Winter Garden Theatres in Toronto are the last surviving Edwardian stacked theaters in the world. The Winter Garden (pictured) is particularly striking, designed as an atmospheric garden, with painted walls in watercolors, and a ceiling decorated with lanterns and dried beech leaves. (Photo: Flickr/CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

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Fox Theatre, USA -

Opened in 1928 as a flagship movie palace in the Fox Theatres chain, Detroit's Fox Theatre is the largest surviving building of its kind from the 1920s. It has hosted a legendary roll call of celebrities, including Elvis Presley, who performed here in 1956, and, of course, many Motown artists. (Photo: Wikimedia/CC BY 2.0)

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Sydney Opera House, Australia -

One of the 20th century's most famous and distinctive buildings, the Sydney Opera House was designed by Danish architect Jørn Utzon and inaugurated in 1973. The iconic building houses three resident companies: Opera Australia, the Sydney Theatre Company, and the Sydney Symphony Orchestra.

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Concertgebouw, Netherlands -

Amsterdam's Concertgebouw dates back to 1888 and is renowned for its fine acoustics. During the 1960s, the concert hall received well-known bands of the day, including The Who, Pink Floyd, and even Led Zeppelin. But it's for classical music that the venue is best suited. (Photo: Flickr/CC BY-NC 2.0)

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Kings Theatre, USA -

Originally presenting shows that combined movies and live vaudeville, Brooklyn's Kings Theatre quickly became a New York City cultural landmark. It dates back to 1929. (Photo: Flickr/CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

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Teatro Colón, Argentina -

Acoustically considered to be among the five best concert venues in the world, Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires has since 1908 hosted some of the most celebrated artists from the worlds of opera, classical music, and ballet.

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La Scala, Italy -

One of the most famous opera houses in the world, Teatro alla Scala in Milan dates back to 1778. La Scala hosted the first productions of many famous operas, and had a special relationship with Verdi.

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Guangzhou Opera House, China -

Inaugurated in 2010, Guangzhou Opera House, located in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, was conceived by Iraqi architect Zaha Hadid and designed to resemble two rocks washed away by the Pearl River.

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Manoel Theatre, Malta -

Opened in 1732, "The Manoel" in Valletta is one of Europe's oldest working theaters. It's named after Grand Master of the Order of the Knights Hospitaller, Fra António Manoel de Vilhena. (Photo: Wikimedia/CC BY-SA 2.0)

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Metropolitan Opera House, USA -

The 1960s-era Metropolitan Opera House (part of New York's Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts) is the largest repertory opera house in the world. (Photo: Wikimedia/CC BY-SA 4.0)

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Hungarian State Opera House, Hungary -

Budapest's grand Hungarian State Opera House numbers composer Gustav Mahler among its many acclaimed guest directors. Besides staging opera, the venue is home to the Budapest Opera Ball, a society event dating back to 1886.

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United Palace, USA -

Located on Broadway in the Washington  Heights neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City, the United Palace was built in the 1930s as Loew's 175th Street Theatre, and functioned as a movie theater. (Photo: Wikimedia/CC BY-SA 4.0)

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Sala São Paulo, Brazil -

Home of the São Paulo State Symphonic Orchestra, Sala São Paulo is housed in the city's Júlio Prestes Cultural Center, itself located in the historic 1930s-era Júlio Prestes railway station. (Photo: Wikimedia/CC BY 2.5)

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The Seebühne, Austria -

The Seebühne is the world's largest floating stage, built for the Bregenzer Festspiele, an annual performing arts festival hosted on the shores of Lake Constance. (Photo: Wikimedia/CC BY-SA 4.0)

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Palacio de Bellas Artes, Mexico -

Inaugurated in 1934, Mexico City's Palacio de Bellas Artes has a mixture of architectural styles; however, it is principally Art Nouveau and Art Deco. An outstanding interior feature is the stage "curtain" (pictured), which is a stained glass foldable panel created out of nearly one million pieces of iridescent colored glass by Tiffany's in New York. (Photo: Flickr/CC BY-NC 2.0)

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Royal Albert Hall, England -

Opened by Queen Victoria in 1871 and named in memory of her late husband, Prince Albert, the Royal Albert Hall in London is one of the world's leading concert halls.

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Paramount Theatre, USA -

When it was built in 1931, the Paramount Theatre in Oakland, California was the largest multi-purpose entertainment venue on the West Coast. The building is celebrated for its beautiful Art Deco design.

See also: Hubcaps, eagles, and sunbursts–The Chrysler Building exposed

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