History
The foundation stone for the theater was laid September 3, 1894, a day after Odessa's one-hundred-year birthday. The building was intended as the new stock exchange, or "New Exchange" to replace the old stock exchange. This is why the vast hall was decorated with six panels by the artist Nikolai Nikolaevich Karazin (1842-1908) which depict commerce throughout various stages of history.
Like the Odessa Opera Theater before it, a world competition was announced for a conceptual design of a new Odessa stock exchange. The design of Viennese architect V.J. Prohaska was considered the best. But this design did not meet all of the requirements, therefore it was modified and improved by Alexander Osipovich Bernardacci.
Construction was completed in 1898. Since 1924 the building has housed the Odessa Philharmonic.
Read more about this topic: Odessa Philharmonic Theater
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