Construction began in 1875, funded by the city of Budapest and by Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria-Hungary, and the new house opened to the public on the 27 September 1884.

[2] They took over the Castle Theatre and, in 1835, were joined by another part of the troupe, after which performances of operas were given under conductor Ferenc Erkel.

It is horseshoe-shaped and – according to measurements done in the 1970s by a group of international engineers – has the third best acoustics in Europe after La Scala in Milan and the Palais Garnier in Paris.

Erkel composed the Hungarian national anthem, and was the first music director of the Opera House; he was also founder of the Budapest Philharmonic Orchestra.

Each year the season lasts from September to the end of June and, in addition to opera performances, the House is home to the Hungarian National Ballet.

There are guided tours[3] of the building in six languages (English, German, Spanish, French, Italian and Hungarian) almost every day.

A vast, sweeping staircase was an important element of the opera house as it allowed ladies to show off their new gowns.

It was closed in 1915, modernized with seating capacity reduced to 2,400, and reopened in 1917 as the "Városi Színház" (City Theatre).