The man who fixed the 'plain illegal' Sydney Opera House

Updated

Danish architect Jorn Utzon has been widely acclaimed for creating the iconic Australian landmark. But recently unearthed recordings lay bare the anguish of Peter Hall - the Australian who completed the job after Utzon's controversial resignation, only to die destitute and alcoholic.

The original seating plan for the Sydney Opera House would not just have been uncomfortable, it would have been illegal, according to recently discovered interviews with the man who succeeded the original architect in the job.

Australian Peter Hall was appointed design architect for the Opera House in 1966, when Danish architect Jorn Utzon resigned after a change of government in New South Wales saw his designs, schedules and cost estimates questioned.

Utzon's resignation triggered protests and marches through the streets of Sydney led by Australian architect Harry Seidler, author Patrick White and others, demanding Utzon be reinstated.

Utzon left the country at the end of April 1966 with his family, never to return to see his masterpiece again.

Now, in an interview that only recently emerged over 40 years after it was recorded, Peter Hall says Utzon's seating plan would never have been licensed by authorities:

I got asked to do something which, on reflection, was close to impossible. And I'm certainly not sure that if I were offered it again now, I would take it on.

Sorry, this audio has expired Audio: Listen to part of the 1973 interview with Peter Hall (ABC News)

Hall says the seats were too small and the space between the rows was insufficient for people to exit the auditorium safely in an emergency.

Recorded by the National Library in 1973, the year the Opera House opened, the audio interview was not for release at the time.

The recordings reveal the thankless job faced by Hall, the man who brought the iconic landmark back from the brink of a political and architectural crisis.

"Utzon was working on a brief for a concert hall of the capacity we have, but with about half the plan area," Hall says in the recording.

"To get the same number of seats in half the area means the seats have got to be smaller. In the first place, this would have been uncomfortable."

Aside from the comfort issue, the design could have been dangerous.

"What happens in theatre emergencies is not that people get overcome by smoke but that they get crushed and trampled in panic, and this results from inadequate exit spaces and inadequate aisles," Hall said.

"People who hear this aren't going to sue me, like people would if I said it publicly today, but the auditorium on which Utzon was working was plain illegal, and it would never have been accepted by the client."

Peter Hall subsequently made radical changes to the interior design.

The interview, discovered by architectural historian Dr Anne Watson, reignites the long-running debate over the relative worth of the Utzon and Peter Hall designs for the interior of the iconic building.

Peter Hall's son Willy Hall says his father was ostracised by the architectural community for agreeing to take on what many architects saw as Utzon's job:

My father was portrayed as a strike breaker and a mediocre architect who took on a job he shouldn't have taken. There were times when he found it unbearable. Peter Hall's son Willy

When Peter Hall died in 1995 at the age of 64, he was destitute and an alcoholic. His family sees him as a tragic victim of "that incredible building".

Ironically, in early 1966 Peter Hall was one of many architects who'd signed a petition calling on the NSW government to reinstate Utzon to the Opera House project.

Hall accepted the job only after speaking with Utzon and establishing in his own mind that Utzon was unlikely to return.

According to Willy Hall, his father remained a great fan of Utzon's work and only made changes when Utzon's preliminary designs proved to be impractical.

Jorn Utzon's son Jan says both architects deserve to be "put on a pedestal" for their contributions to the building.

"I think Peter Hall probably had the short end of the stick in this job," says Jan Utzon.

"My father felt that this young, promising architect, who he had actually met in Denmark many years previously, was probably a good successor in the way that he would carry my father's ideas onwards."

Australian Story's "Phantom of the Opera House" can be watched in full here. View a timeline of events below:

Opera House design competition announced

December, 1955

New South Wales premier Joseph Cahill announces an international design competition for a Sydney opera house. Bennelong Point is approved as the site.

Competition closes

December, 1956

Jorn Utzon's design is one of last to come in – the 218th of 222 from around the world.

Work commences on Opera House

February, 1959

Although it is considered far too early, with the usual testing not done, it is a shrewd political move as Labor almost loses the March election. As a result of the premature start, foundations were being constructed for a building that had yet to be designed. This lack of forward planning was to bedevil the construction process.

Utzon devises 'Spherical Solution'

August, 1961

Utzon comes up with a design for the roof (The Spherical Solution). He chooses a radius of 75 metres, a decision that is to have huge ramifications for the project. It reduces the available internal space, which was already deficient. This was the overarching design flaw in the Opera House that could not be overcome.

Podium completed long after due date

January, 1963

Stage One, the podium, is completed in the time the entire project was supposed to have been finished.

Coalition defeats Labor at NSW election

1 May, 1965

Labor defeated by Coalition. Bob Askin becomes Premier and Country Party leader Davis Hughes appointed Minister for Public Works.

Utzon seeks funding to prototype ceiling fix

December, 1965

Utzon asks for money to prototype solutions for the hall ceilings. Hughes wants approval from design engineer Ove Arup that the scheme is viable and asks for a report.

Utzon's ceilings deemed not viable by engineer

January, 1966

Ove Arup gives report to Government saying that Utzon's proposed plywood ceilings for the halls are not viable. This leads to a deterioration in the relationship between architect and engineer that would become irrevocable.

Utzon resigns from Opera House project

February 28, 1966

Utzon has a meeting with Minister for Public Works, Davis Hughes. By the end of it he resigns. Ignoring advice to consult a solicitor, he has a resignation letter delivered to Hughes at 3pm.

Public rally calling for Utzon's return

March 3, 1966

Architects head rally calling for Utzon's reinstatement. Peter Hall is one of many architects who signs a petition calling for Utzon to be reinstalled.

Department of Public Works approaches Peter Hall

March, 1966

The Department of Public Works' Ted Farmer asks Peter Hall to work on Stage Three of the Opera House. He is not the first architect Farmer had approached. Hall says no.

A few weeks later Col Humphrey, the Director of Public Works, asks Hall again. Hall declines, pointing out that he had signed the petition demanding Utzon's return.

Mr Humphrey says Utzon has resigned and is not coming back. Hall asks for time to think about it. He does some research and speaks to Utzon by phone.

Utzon says "I don't think you can do it, I think you're a brave man to try, but I'm not going to be involved anymore".

Peter Hall appointed to Opera House project

March 28, 1966

Public Works minister Davis Hughes appoints a new panel of architects to complete the Opera House, headed by Peter Hall. He is in charge of design, David Littlemore manages construction, Lionel Todd in charge of contracts and Ted Farmer is Chairman.

They must complete the interior of both halls, as well as glass walls and other incomplete spaces.

Hall accepts role of Design Architect

April 10, 1966

Peter Hall accepts the role of design architect for Stage Three. He says in interview with The Daily Mirror "I'm overwhelmed but I think I can finish the Opera House."

Utzon leaves Australia

April 18, 1966

Jorn Utzon and family leave Australia, never to return.

ABC submits detailed requirements for concert hall

June, 1966

The ABC submits its detailed requirements for the Opera House's concert hall. It calls for adequate recording environment and seating for 2,800 people in a non-proscenium hall acoustically suitable for symphonic concerts.

Utzon has designed a dual purpose proscenium hall and had only achieved the desired seating by making seat and aisle unacceptably tight.

The ABC's input was crucial, as without its subscribers the Opera House would not be financially viable as a concert hall.

'Hall's Hall' spells the end of the 'Walnut' dual-purpose hall design

December 12, 1966

Hall and his team submit a new brief for Stage Three. They conclude that the dual-purpose hall is unworkable and recommend main hall be designed for concerts only.

This is a major decision. It means opera will be relegated to a smaller space. It also requires existing stage production machinery be demolished.

This brief largely remains the blueprint for the completed Opera House. Supporters of Utzon feel betrayed. Utzon's "walnut" concept for a dual-purpose hall would never see the light of day. They start to refer to the Opera House disparagingly as "Hall's Hall".

Opera House Stage Three completed

June, 1973

Stage Three is completed at a cost of $80 million. The final bill is $102 million.

Opera House officially opened

October 20, 1973

Opera House officially opened by Queen Elizabeth II.

Utzon exhibition contributes to Peter Hall's decline

November 1, 1994

An exhibition of Utzon's final design drawings for the Opera House, Unseen Utzon, opens in the Exhibition Hall and runs until June 30, 1995.

It reopens old wounds and is said to contribute to Peter Hall's decline.

These drawings are used by the pro-Utzon camp to prove that Utzon had solutions to all the problems but influential Australian architect Ken Woolley argues that "no drawing shown at Unseen Utzon was a real working drawing".

Peter Hall dies

May 19, 1995

Peter Hall suffers a stroke and dies, aged 64. His son Willy collects his diaries and books and takes them back to his Southern Highlands property.

Peter Hall posthumously awarded

June 29, 2006

Peter Hall is awarded the NSW Royal Australian Institute of Architects' "25-year award" - posthumous recognition of his role in completing Utzon's work.

The jury says: "Peter Hall and his partners completed the building in very difficult and controversial circumstances, conferring with Utzon himself, respecting his framework and ensuring the functional performance of the venues".

It is a controversial decision, reigniting debate about Hall's work on the concert hall.

Jorn Utzon dies

November 29, 2008

Topics: architecture, design, people, human-interest, sydney-2000, nsw, australia, denmark, wollongong-2500

First posted