Photo: Francisco Tirado

About the Opera Park

The Opera Park is designed as a scene with background, middle ground and foreground. The park's diversity in terms of plant species and selected 'soloist trees' emphasises the dramaturgy as an organic scenography varying according to season and evolving over time.

Each season offers new experiences in the park – from the blossoming cherry trees in the spring to the lush perennial garden in the summer and the autumn’s backdrop of yellow and red. Furthermore, the great variety of species provides excellent conditions for birds and insects.

 

Visit the Opera Park

Photo: Cobe

Facts about the Opera Park

  • 21,500 m2 park 
  • 680 m2 greenhouse 
  • 300 parking spaces, including 50 charging points 
  • Approximately 225 different plant species 
  • 600 trees, 80,000 perennials and 40,000 bulbs 
  • Built in the period from 2019 to 2023 
  • Donated by the A.P. Moller Foundation 
  • Architect: Cobe
  • Engineers: VITA Engineers, Via Trafik and DBI
  • Owner: the Opera Park Foundation
  • Opening date: 27 October 2023
  • In 2024, the Opera Park has been awarded several prizes: ArchDaily's Building of the Year Award in the category 'Public & Landscape Architecture', Architizer's A+Awards in the category 'Public Parks and Green Spaces' and Copenhagen Municipality's Building Award

Six gardens with geographical references

The composition of species from all over the world is a salute to Denmark’s proud maritime tradition and the seeds that arrived on ships returning to Copenhagen in bygone days. Hence, the Opera Park is divided into six gardens with geographical references. 

In the centre of the Opera Park, you find the organically shaped greenhouse with café and direct access to the underground car park via an open green atrium. 

Photo: Jay Castor

The Danish Oak Forest

Classic Danish forest trees such as oak, forest pine, rowanberry and bird cherry form the backdrop in the park. In the background, forest pines rise with their beautiful trunks while oak trees form a canopy and create a forest atmosphere. The rowanberry trees provide variation over the year flowering in the spring and berry setting in the autumn while bird cherries are 'soloists' with beautiful red trunks and white spring flowering. The undergrowth is like a lush forest floor, consisting of grasses, ferns, large valleys and larch spores.

In the middle of the Danish Oak Forest lies an organically shaped water lily pond inviting peace for reflection.

Photo: Francisco Tirado

The English Garden

With low flowering plants, the English Garden represents the foreground of the park. In this garden, you find cherry dogwood, snow pear, berry marrow and hawthorn all of which bloom in spring. Roses, tamarisk and shrub potentile bloom in various pink shades, and the undergrowth is covered by grasses and pink, purple and yellow perennials. The perennials create a varied and eye-catching sea of flowers in the summer season.

A fountain is beautifully located in the centre of the English Garden between the greenhouse and the waterfront.

Photo: Lise Odegaard

The North American Forest

With its calm and magnificent atmosphere, the North American Forest forms the background of the scenery. Large sculptural trees create columned halls in the slightly hilly landscape with a green ground cover.

Conifers such as mammoth trees, giant tuja and douglas fir are complemented by maple, red-leaved shrews and deer antler all of which bath the autumn garden in bright red and yellow colours. The 'soloist' is represented by the magnolia tree characterised by beautiful pot-shaped flowers in the spring and yellow-orange colours in the autumn.

In the North American Forest, you find a mirror pool where regular drips of water from a mast set a calm pulse.

Photo: Lise Odegaard

The Nordic Forest

Birch and forest pine are the primary trees in the Nordic Forest. They stand in large groups allowing the white trunks of birch trees to light up between the slender red trunks of the forest pine.

In the undergrowth, you see belts of mountain pine while hawthorn stands as a 'soloist' with its crooked structure, white spring blooms and red autumn berries. The forest ground cover consists of a carpet of perennial grasses of different heights and colors.

Photo: Lise Odegaard

The Oriental Garden

In the Oriental Garden, you find sculptural conifers such as brush pine, temple wood and cedar. Wing walnut and sophora contribute to the oriental atmosphere due to their beautiful branch structure.

In the spring, the Oriental Garden is characterised by the pink blossoms of the various species of cherry trees. The 'soloist' of the Oriental Forest is the cedar which is characterised by bluish-green needles and slightly drooping branches. The undergrowth consists of various types of ivy as well as flowering perennials and shrubs.

Photo: Francisco Tirado

The Mediterranean Garden

In the greenhouse, you find plants and trees from the Mediterranean region such as citrus trees, oil trees, carob plants and clivia. The Mediterranean Garden covers an area from the lower level of the car park to the café via hanging gardens. The ‘soloist’ is a beautiful fig tree of nine metres.

The greenhouse is open during the café's opening hours.

A sustainable and economical cycle

The Opera Park's many plant species contribute to high biodiversity and ensure that the park may function as a habitat for a diversity of birds and insects. 

The park and the car park constitute a sustainable and economical cycle, e.g. rainwater is reused for watering plants and the income from the parking helps finance the park's operations and maintenance. In addition, solar cells on the roof of the Royal Danish Opera ensure climate-neutral power supply for the car park, park and greenhouse.

 

Visit the Opera Park

The Opera Park’s board of directors

Jesper Rasmussen (Chair)

  • Year of birth: 1952
  • Membership period: Jesper Rasmussen joined the Board of Directors on 28 May 2020 and is up for election in 2024
  • Special competences: Business and construction management
  • Other management positions: Jesper Rasmussen is chair of the board of Junkbusters Group ApS, Skou Gruppen A/S, Enco A/S – El Entreprise, MD Holding København ApS, Odense Letbane P/S, SG Totalentreprise A/S, Ingholt Consult ApS, Byens Byggerådgivning A/S and Groundplug ApS. He is also a board member of Ejendomsaktieselskabet of 1 May 2015 and director of both Sankt Peder Consulting ApS and Ejendomsaktieselskabet af 1 May 2015
  • Appointed by: A.P. Moller Foundation
  • Independent: Yes

Lars-Erik Brenøe

  • Year of birth: 1961
  • Membership period: Lars-Erik Brenøe joined the Board of Directors on 20 April 2023 and is up for election in 2027
  • Special competences: Foundation and business management, law
  • Other management positions: Lars-Erik Brenøe is chair of the board of Ejerforeningen 21-5 DK3 P/S and a board member of Monjasa Holding A/S, A.P. Møller og Hustru Chastine Mc-Kinney Møllers Familiefond, A.P. Møller Holding A/S and Odense Havn A/S
  • Appointed by: A.P. Moller Foundation
  • Independent: No

Birgitte Schou

  • Year of birth: 1967
  • Membership period: Birgitte Schou joined the Board of Directors on 28 May 2020 and is up for election in 2024
  • Special competences: Foundation and business management, finance
  • Other management positions: Birgitte Schou is a board member of A.P. Møller Maritime ApS, DISfonden and Maersk Product Tankers A/S
  • Appointed by: A.P. Moller Foundation
  • Independent: No

Henrik Sten Petersen

  • Year of birth: 1971
  • Membership period: Henrik Sten Petersen joined the Board of Directors on 28 May 2020 and is up for election in 2024
  • Special competences: Planning, sales and operational optimization, management of cultural institutions
  • Other management positions: Henrik Sten Petersen is CEO of Tordensky Invest ApS and Tournesol Solar ApS
  • Appointed by: The Royal Danish Theatre and Chapel
  • Independent: Yes

Jon David Pape

  • Year of birth: 1953
  • Term of membership: Jon David Pape joined the Board of Directors on 31 December 2020 and is up for election in 2024
  • Special competences: Landscape architecture, public management and park, urban space management
  • Other management positions: Jon David Pape is chair of the Park- og Naturforvalterne og Erhvervsejerforeningen Borgbygård (Kastrup)
  • Appointed by: City of Copenhagen
  • Independent: Yes

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The Opera Park has been built by the Opera Park Foundation on a donation from the A.P. Møller and Chastine Mc-Kinney Møller Foundation.

 

Learn more about the A.P. Moller Foundation