An enormous egg hatched in Beijing on Friday when The National Grand Theatre opened its doors to the public. Well, almost....
Visitors will have access to much of the new venue but will be unable to look inside the 6,000-seat theatre as interior work is still going on.
It blends in well to the immediate landscape and is surrounded by a 35,000 sq metre artificial lake. It is this that gives the dome its egg-shape when you look at the water.
It may be 3 years behind schedule but it seems that the Chinese were slightly ambitious hoping to complete in 4 years. £180 million and 7 years later the biggest issue for them now seems to be how to clean it. Being situated in the path of Gobi desert dust storms the theatre's Director is unperturbed. He claims the dust will wash off but the droppings from birds were a harder problem to solve. The answer: A nanotechnology film that covers the glass will dissolve droppings and dust.