Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality Harbiye Cemil Topuzlu Open Air Theater

Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality Harbiye Cemil Topuzlu Open-Air Theater, located in the Harbiye district of Istanbul's Dolmabahçe Valley, is one of the most important cultural event spots in Istanbul.

The old name of the theater, which hosts tens of thousands of spectators and hundreds of events, is Harbiye Open Air Theatre. It operates as an open-air concert, theater and performance center in the area next to Hilton Istanbul Bosphorus and Lütfi Kırdar Convention and Exhibition Center.

İBB Harbiye Cemil Topuzlu Open Air Theater was first included in the zoning plan prepared by City Planner Henri Prost in 1930. The plan of the theater is made by Nihat Yücel and Nahit Uysal. During the period when Lütfi Kırdar was the Governor and Mayor of Istanbul, the foundations of the theater were laid in 1946.

Uzunköprü stone and limestone are used by mixing in the construction of the theater, especially in the façade parts, thus creating a color harmony. The theater, which opened its doors with a magnificent opening ceremony on August 9, 1947, takes its final shape with the changes made by Carl Ebert, one of the directors of Ankara State Conservatory.

All the shortcomings of the theater could only be completed in 1950. With all the additions made, the cost of the building amounts to 900 thousand Turkish liras. On the other hand, the first work performed in the theater is Sophocles' King Oedipus, exhibited by Ankara State Theater artists. In 1958, the theater was named after Cemil Topuzlu, one of the former mayors of Istanbul.

In the building, as in amphitheaters, semicircular stair steps facing a flat stage, audience seats or gradens are located in rows upwards. There is a protocol box for 30 people, an audience capacity of 3 thousand 972 people and an orchestra area for 80 people. In addition, the Kavuk Delivery Ceremony, in which the late master actor Rasim Öztekin handed over his turban to Şevket Çoruh in 2020, was held here for the first time in its history, open to the public.