Dalhalla
Dalhalla is an open-air stage for theater, concert and opera performances. It is located in an old limestone quarry near Rättvik in the Swedish province of Dalarna . The choice of name "Dalhalla" is a combination of Dalarna and Valhalla from Nordic mythology .
Dalhalla is an abandoned limestone quarry about 8 km north of Rättvik. A gigantic opencast mine has been dug and blasted here since the 1940s : 400 meters long, 175 meters wide and 60 meters deep. The limestone quarry was closed in 1991. Soon thereafter, the opera singer Margareta Dellefors sparked the idea of an open-air stage. The old limestone quarry outside Rättvik seemed well suited for this, it had the shape of an amphitheater and good acoustics . With financial support from the municipality of Rättvik and the province of Dalarna, Birgit Nilsson opened the new stage on July 23, 1994 .
The good acoustics are due to the rough, irregular rock walls that surround the theater. They suppress the echo and create a soft sound. The reverberation times and resonances are so good that no electrical amplification is necessary for opera performances. The theater holds approx. 4,000 visitors. According to the Austrian music festival magazine Magazin Festspiele , Dalhalla ranks fourth among the best outdoor arenas for music performances worldwide.
Picture gallery
Overview of Dalhalla
Scene and audience “Stora Stygga”, 1997
Stage before "Rhapsody in Rock"
The bandmaster comes in the rowboat
Monica Zetterlund in Dalhalla, July 1997
Web links
- Dalhalla's official website , (Swedish)
- Dalhalla - Articles and Pictures , Vi Musicians, (Swedish)
Coordinates: 60 ° 56 ′ 55 ″ N , 15 ° 6 ′ 16 ″ E