Odeon of Herodes Atticus, Athens, Greece

The Odeon of Herodes Atticus is a stone theatre structure located on the southwest slope of the Acropolis of Athens. It was built in 161 AD by the Athenian magnate Herodes Atticus in memory of his wife, Aspasia Annia Regilla. It was originally a steep-sloped theater with a three-story stone front wall and a wooden roof made of expensive cedar of Lebanon timber. It was used as a venue for music concerts with a capacity of 5,000. It lasted intact until it was destroyed and left in ruins by the Heruli in 267 AD.

The audience stands and the orchestra (stage) were restored using Pentelic marble in the 1950s. Since then it has been the main venue of the Athens Festival, which runs from May through October each year, featuring a variety of acclaimed Greek as well as International performances.

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User Reviews

Traveler Man (2 years ago)
I've been here before for sightseeing. The last time I came to listen to an evening concert. The concert was very nice. The amphitheater was magnificent. "I am still standing tall," he said, with all his glory. The pleasure of listening to a concert here is very different. It was also extra nice to have the Acropolis in the background at night.

Claudia D. (2 years ago)
Another must see sight in Athens. Go when it opens (opened at 8am when I went) beat the cruise ship crowds and the heat (depending on time of year - I went in August; it was hot by 10am.) Get tickets ahead if possible. There was signage for discount but you want to do more research because you had to show your passport - I wasn't carrying mine anyway. Truly an interesting and Inspiring place to visit. Recommend it!

Go explore! (2 years ago)
Beautiful venue at the heart of Athens. Make sure you book in advance to watch a play or any kind of performance at this beautiful ancient stone theatre. It definitely deserves a visit!

Nick Strantzias (2 years ago)
Amazing space... Standing for hundreds of years, under the sacred temple of Acropolis. Event organizing is amazing, with respect to the nature of place. It's a must visit sight in Athens

Petra Kamenicka (2 years ago)
We went for a concert during the festival in June and it was absolutely worth it. The atmosphere was incredible, and even though we did not know the performer we enjoyed it a lot. The capacity of the theatre is 4.7k people and it was almost completely booked out. It is good to come a bit earlier as most of the people started arriving 20min before the beginning which delayed the concert start and created a big queues.

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