Barcelona’s Liceu theatre reopens to audience of 2,292 plants

Musicians rehearsed in front of an unusual audience on Monday at the opera house’s first concert since the pandemic shut down venues in mid-March.

Taking artistic license with the meaning of a ‘live audience’, musicians at Barcelona’s stately Gran Teatre del Liceu performed in front of 2,292 plants on Monday. Marking Spain’s official lifting of lockdown, the famed Liceu reopened for its first concert since mid-March with a live-streamed performance of Giacomo Puccini’s ‘Crisantemi’ by the UceLi String Quartet. Calling the extraordinary event a prelude to its 2020-2021 season, the Liceu was at capacity with all 2,292 of its red, velvet seats occupied by an array of leafy onlookers.

The concert was the brainchild of Madrid-based artist, Eugenio Ampudia, who said in an interview that the idea came to him during lockdown. For three months, he became increasingly aware that the sounds of busy urban life we’re now so used to could not be heard and instead, he had time to listen to nature.

Intending to make the world reflect on the importance of sustainability and human’s relationship with nature, he made ‘Concierto para el bioceno’ a reality.

‘I thought why don’t we go into the Liceu like weeds, take it over and let nature start growing everywhere and turn it into something alive even when there are no people,’ he said.

From palms to ficus trees, all plants were brought in from local nurseries and will eventually be donated to a healthcare worker from the Hospital Clinic of Barcelona to acknowledge their heroic work on the frontlines of the pandemic.

‘After a strange, painful period, the Liceu’s artistic director and curator, Blanca de la Torre, offered us a different perspective for our return to activity,’ explains the venue’s website. ‘A perspective that brings us closer to something as essential as our relationship with nature.’ 

Capturing the bizarre spectacle, cameras panned the sea of green, allowing the public to watch a nine-minute video of the event via Instagram livestream. Take a look here.