It was a professional theatre, which displayed opera ensembles and orchestra performances based on the local Bydgoszcz Conservatoire located at 9 Mickiewicz Alley.

Deutsche Bühne staged operas, operettas, musicals and vaudeville, hosting German companies (Berlin, Hamburg, Königsberg).

In addition, operetta guests were outstanding Polish artists of the time (Matilda Lewińska-Polińska, Ignacy Dygas, Stanisław Gruszczyński, Jan Kiepura, Lucyna Messal).

[2] After the end of World War II, efforts were made to create a permanent Opera facility in Bydgoszcz, but despite large popular audience, the initiative did not get approval from the authorities, which did not believed in the success of the project.

Performances were held in the building of the Polish Theatre in Mickiewicz Alley, in various clubs and occasionally in the hall of the Pomeranian House of Art.

[7] During its four-year activity, Opera Studio gave 10 premieres and around 400 performances, including 34 outside Bydgoszcz (Toruń, Grudziadz, Inowrocław, Świecie) which attracted an audience of 22 000.

In spite of these unusual conditions, the company gained there its first experience and several artists who started here, appeared later on national stages in Warsaw, Łódź and Poznań: Barbara Zagórzanka (soprano), Lidia Skowron, Bożena Kinasz-Mikołajczak, Bożena Betley, Elżbieta Hoffmann, Monika Olkisz-Chabros (soprano) Henryk Kłosiński (tenor), Bronisław Pekowski (bass-baritone), and others.

[2] Besides, the troupe hosted the greatest opera artists: Maria Foltyn (1960), Antonina Kawecka (1962), Bogna Sokorska (1960), Krystyna Szczepańska (1964), Teresa Żylis-Gara (1959), Wiesław Ochman (1965), Bernard Ładysz (1960), Bogdan Paprocki (1962), Ryszard Tarasiewicz (1970)[3] Marcin Bronikowski (1994, 2012).

In the 1960s, operas and operettas were performed far out Bydgoszcz Voivodeship, in places like Piła, Wałcz, Zielona Góra, Konin, Płock, Żary.

Guest soloists from socialist countries and outstanding Polish artists were invited, such as: Bernard Ładysz, Bogdan Paprocki, Antonina Kawecka, Krystyna Szczepańska and Wieslaw Ochman.

[6] The idea to build a new seat for the Opera company in Bydgoszcz appeared in 1960 and was strongly supported by the then director of Pomeranian Philharmonic, Andrzej Szwalbe.

[3] In 1996, the Opera Nova employed 170 people, including 23 soloists, 30 ballet dancers, 44 chorus singers, 56 musicians and others (conductors, directors...).

The first initiative came from Andrzej Schwalbe, then director of the Pomeranian Philharmonic:[8] for him it was clear from the start that the co-existence in the long run under one roof of two companies and orchestras could not achieve the needed artistic stability.

[11] Rationale was the successful attendance at opera performances and the lack of large auditoriums in the city, capable of satisfying the growing artistic aspirations of the public.

Different locations were considered for the future opera house: the place of the former Municipal Theatre, or Ludowy Park on Jagiellońska street, or again on the heights of Bydgoszcz.

[11] In May, the Association of Polish Architects announced a national contest to "develop the architectural design of the building of Musical Theatre and Drama in Bydgoszcz".

[13] The auditorium itself has been designed on the model of a theatre of ancient Greece, without any partition between loges and balconies, so that the audience could feel closer to the artists.

Issues to get building materials were recurrent and in 1977, at the time to secure the investment Polish Prime Minister Piotr Jaroszewicz canceled the project for economical reasons.

However, local First Secretary of the Polish United Workers' Party in Bydgoszcz, Józef Majchrzak, decided to overrule Warsaw's decision by continuing the construction.

[11] Although works were expected to end in 1982, the economic crisis of the 1980s reduced severely state funds allocated for culture, interrupting the construction.

Around this date, initiative was taken to use the raw building to organize the first Bydgoszcz Opera Festival: main points were to draw attention of the public and decision makers on this important project and to raise funds for its achievement.

[11] The final stage of the investment occurred in the years 2002 to 2008: government of Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship decided to change the function of the third circle (originally, the area planned for production and decorations storage), so as to create a large convention center, where could be organized symposiums, meetings and congresses.

Construction of Bydgoszcz opera house lasted 34 years and 5 months and is considered one of the longest building projects for a theatre in post-war Poland.

In the years following its achievement, the Opera Nova has been used as a Regional Convention Center, organizing a number of cultural events and festivals.

[14] The building, by its own size, stands out in the architectural environment of the city centre: it has 6 levels, covers an area of 24 432 m2, has a volume of 120 700 m3 and a height of 34.19 m. Its location along the Brda river provides an opening to the Mill Island.

The Third circle is devoted to the Opera Nova Convention Center, with two conference rooms (more than 200 seats each), allowing the organization of large symposiums or seminars.

Congress Centre Opera Nova, occupying the third circle of the building, provides professional support for symposia, conferences, trade shows, conventions, exhibitions, anniversaries and performances of small theatrical plays.

[2] A professional Opera Nova orchestra was established in 1963, comprising initially 36 musicians, the majority of whom were graduates from the Bydgoszcz Music Academy - "Feliks Nowowiejski".

[2] Since its creation, the ballet premiered 6 times in Poland for The Nutcracker (1958), The King of the winds (Polish: Król wichrów) by Feliks Nowowiejski (1963), Legend of love (Russian: Легенда о любви) by Melikov (1967), The Tale of the Stone Flower (Russian: Сказ о каменном цветке) by Sergei Prokofiev (1970), Anna Karenina by Rodion Shchedrin (1979) and a world premiere, the fairy tale ballet Puss in boots by Bogdan Pawlowski (1997).

The festival is funded by the Marshal Office of Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship, the city of Bydgoszcz, the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage and private sponsors.