Founded in 1967, the Opéra Royal de Wallonie is, to a large extent, subsidised by the Communauté Française de Belgique (Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles) [French community of Belgium] and the City and Province of Liège.  It is one of the three major opera houses in Belgium.

Its geographic situation, in the heart of Liège and the Euregio, at the crossroads between Germany, the Netherlands, the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg and France, attracts a Belgian and international audience.

Since its origin, the institution has occupied the Théâtre Royal on loan from the City of Liège. This magnificent building, which was inaugurated on 4 November 1820, has a capacity of more than 1,000 spectators.  It is currently undergoing renovation. Since November 2009, therefore, the ORW has been occupying the Palais Opéra, a huge pavilion with outstanding equipment which was erected to accommodate the performances until the end of the work, planned for 2012.

Since 2007, the general manager of the institution has been Stefano Mazzonis di Pralafera. He also holds the post of artistic director.  It was he who appointed the current musical director, Paolo Arrivabeni, whose talent is recognised and appreciated worldwide. 

Works from the 19th century repertoire (Verdi, Puccini, Massenet, etc.) occupy a large place in our theatre's programme, but the Opéra also has a mission of discovery. Thus, the Liège-based opera house opens its doors to the less familiar repertoire of the 18th century, with composers such as Cherubini, Galuppi, Gluck and Grétry.

The Orchestra and the Chorus are extremely capable and shine in many genres of opera. This ease is recognised not only by the public but also by the specialist press and professionals from the world of opera.  The Opéra is also regularly invited to perform abroad, for example at the Balbeeck International Festival and the Santander Festival.

The Opéra Royal de Wallonie and its loyal supporters love to welcome to their stage international stars such as Ruggero Raimondi, Juan Diego Florez and José Van Dam, but they are also keen to discover local and/or budding artists.

Many productions are coproduced with Swiss, Italian, French or even Spanish opera houses, while the ORW is establishing strong relations with a number of foreign institutions.

This does not prevent it from being fully integrated into the local and cultural fabric of the community and from offering productions aimed at young audiences, particularly in an educational context.

In Liège, we move with the times and we innovate. The Opéra regularly releases DVDs of the productions it performs.  Since 2010, many productions have also been broadcast  live and free of charge on the internet via the Dailymotion platform.