[1] It was designed by Daniel Libeskind for the DDDA, built by Joe O'Reilly (Chartered Land), and opened by Harry Crosbie on 18 March 2010.

[3][4][5] The site originally housed various buildings and structures of the Dublin Gasworks Company which were demolished in 1985 and decontaminated by the DDDA in the late 1990s and early 2000s at a cost of over €50m.

The theatre was built by Joe O'Reilly[15] of Chartered Land (Castlethorn),[8] on a 0.8-acre site,[16] at a reported cost of €80 million (incl.

Studio Liebskind also designed the office blocks on either side of the theatre (2, 4 & 5 Grand Canal Square) to ensure O'Reilly's scheme was integrated.

[28][29] Crosbie officially opened the Grand Canal Theatre with a performance of Swan Lake by the Russian State Ballet of Siberia on 18 March 2010.

[35][36][37] Grant Thornton took control of the theatre for NAMA, however Live Nation continued to manage the venue and support the sales process with CBRE.