‘Look and Look Again’ by Scottish visual artist Fraser Taylor was unveiled on Wednesday 28 November at the Theatre Royal Glasgow, bringing to a close the 150th Anniversary celebrations.
Commissioned by Scottish Opera and Ambassador Theatre Group and made in the former’s workshop at Edington Street Production Studios, the sculpture is now on public display in Theatre Royal’s balcony foyer. Made up of seven components, it was inspired by a series of drawings Fraser made while observing the theatre’s auditorium, foyer and dramatic spiral staircase, as well as Scottish Opera rehearsals and performances.
Scottish Opera’s Community Choir, conducted by Katy Lavinia Cooper, performed in front of invited guests at the event. Speeches were made by Scottish Opera’s General Director, Alex Reedijk and Nick Potter, the Group International Business Director for The Ambassador Theatre Group.
The unveiling brings to a close a year of special events for the 150 year-old Theatre Royal, which first opened in 1867. In November 2017, Scottish Opera presented three performances of Lauder starring Jamie MacDougall, and a special gala performance of La traviata, attended by HRH The Duchess of Gloucester, who has been the Patron of Scottish Opera for over 30 years.
150th anniversary tours around the theatre also took place, and there was a digital memory sharing campaign where audiences, employees and audiences were encouraged to share their memories of the Victorian theatre through the years.