Situated on a spit of land on the foreshore of Sydney Harbour, the unique structure of the Sydney Opera House, a multipurpose performing arts centre, is widely regarded as one of the most famous and distinctive buildings of the world, as well as a masterpiece of late modern architecture. Designed by the Danish architect Jørn Utzon, suggesting a series of overlapping shells and sails, and completed by Peter Hall, leading an Austrian architectural team, the magnificent building, with the picturesque view of the sailboat-dotted water, was formerly opened by Queen Elizabeth II on 20 October 1973.

Known for its ingenious elegant architecture, and regarded as the iconic landmark of the city, the Sydney Opera House became a UNESCO World Heritage Site on 28 June 1998, and included in the Australian National Heritage List since 2005.

The Sydney Opera House, one of the most-photographed buildings in the world, is situated just east of the Sydney Harbour Bridge, on the Bennelong Point, a promontory on the south side of the harbour, named after Woollarawarre Bennelong, a senior Aboriginal Eora man at the time of the arrival of British colonisers in Australia in 1788. However, the need for a suitable venue for large theatrical and musical productions in the city was first lobbied by Sir Eugene Aynsley Goossens, the Director of the New South Wales State Conservatorium of Music, as well as the resident conductor of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, in 1947.

Finally, he gained the support of the New South Wales Premier John Joseph Cahill in the matter and in 1954, the government convened the Opera House Committee to choose a site for the construction of the planned building, which recommended Bennelong Point early in the following year.

After the finalisation of the site, an international design competition was launched on 13 September 1955, for the proposed building, consisting of a large hall, primarily for concerts and other large musical and dance productions and a smaller hall, for dramatic presentations and smaller musical events. In all 233 entries were submitted for the event from the architects of around 30 countries, and on 29 January 1957, Jørn Utzon was announced the winner of the competition by the jury for the competition for his dramatic design of a complex, consisting of two main halls side by side facing out to the harbour on a large podium, topped with a row of sail-shaped interlocking panels, serving the purpose of both roof and wall.

Apart from winning the prize money of ₤5000, Utzon also earned international fame for his spectacular design of the opera house.

However, although the construction of the building began in 1959, and the tentative date of opening of the Opera House was originally planned for the Australia Day, the 26th of January in 1963, cost overruns and structural engineering difficulties in executing the riddled visionary design of Jørn Utzon troubled the course of the work, which faced several delays. As a result, the project grew controversial, and public opinion turned against it for a while. Irritated by the continuing disagreements with the government authorities, Utzon resigned in 1966, but construction continued until September 1973, under the supervision of a structural engineering firm, led by the partners, three Sydney architects, namely Peter Hall, David Littlemore, and Lionel Todd. However, Utzon agreed to return as the building’s architect in 1999, and redesigned the former Reception Hall on his return, which was subsequently reopened in 2004 as the Utzon Room.

Covering a huge area of 1.8 hectares (18,000 sq m), the structure of the Magnificent Sydney Opera House, is supported on 588 concrete piers, sunk as much as 82 feet (25 m) below sea level, while the highest roof point is 219.81 feet (67 m) above sea level. The special feature of the iconic building is its roof structure, comprising a series of large gleaming white sail-shaped precast concrete panels, commonly referred to as shells, supported by precast concrete ribs. However, the shells which seem to be appearing uniformly white from a distance are actually composed of 1,056,006 tiles in two colours, glossy white and matte cream. Apart from the almost whitish tiles of the shells and the clear glass curtain walls of the foyer spaces, the exterior of the building is largely clad with aggregate panels composed of pink granite.

The Sydney Opera House contains a number of performance venues, comprising two larger and three smaller theatres of different sizes. Of the two larger spaces, the 2679-seat Concert Hall, used to host symphony concerts, choir performances, and popular music shows, is located in the western group of shells, while the Opera Theatre, subsequently renamed Joan Sutherland Theatre, after the celebrated Austrian operatic soprano, and seats just over 1500, used for Opera and dance performances, including ballet, is in the eastern group. The smaller venues, which include the Drama Theatre, the Playhouse and the Studio, are located within the podium, beneath the Concert Hall. The Forecourt, a large stone-paved open-air venue with the adjacent monumental steps, located on the southeastern end of the complex, is used for various outdoor performances. Apart from the Bennelong Restaurant, located in a smaller group of shells set to the western side of the Monumental Steps, the building also houses a recording studio, shops and cafes, restaurants and bars, including the Opera Bar.