Not All Empty Nests

While the $450 million “Bird’s Nest” Olympic Stadium has become little more than a tourist curiosity less than a year after opening, China’s other relatively new major venue is doing markedly better.

The National Center of the Performing Arts, located near Tiananmen Square in Beijing, opened for business about 18 months ago and in its first 13 months hosted about 1,000 separate performances. Another 600 performances have been booked so far this year.

Critics say the center’s success so far may be due more to the building than to what the building contains.

It’s a glimmering oval dome of glass and titanium that rises out of a pool of water. Designed by French architect Paul Andreu, it holds an opera house, concert hall and a theatre.

Much of the challenge for the future will be convincing arts lovers to spend money. The government subsidizes about 30 percent of the center’s annual $58.6 million operating cost, and because it receives almost nothing from corporate sponsors, ticket sales have to make up the difference.

Most tickets for performances by the China Philharmonic cost about 300 yuan ($44), which is too expensive for the vast majority of Chinese.

However, classical music is gaining popularity so there is confidence in the arts community that an audience exists.

Among the most popular performances have been concerts by the Chicago Symphony, violinist Anne-Sophie Mutter and a staging of the opera “Tosca.”