The Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow was reopened on Friday evening after a renovation that took six years to complete, at a cost officially estimated at $1 billion.
The theatre closed in 2005 for restoration work, but the job proved much bigger than anyone expected.
The BBC reports huge sums have been spent on restoring its imperial splendour.
The frescoes and vast quantities of gold leaf have all been replaced. The material was washed with vodka and polished with squirrel tails.
Symbolically, the curtain has lost its hammer and sickle from the Soviet era, while the old insignia on the building's facade has been replaced with the Russian eagle.
Other improvements include a bigger orchestra pit and improved dressing rooms. The rehearsal stage mirrors the main stage directly below, so the dancers know the exact size of the space.
The BBC reports there has been a theatre on the site since the 1700s, and the current building dates back to 1856. An earlier building was burnt down during Napoleon's occupation of Moscow in 1812.
The first performance is an invitation-only gala concert which will be attended by President Dmitri Medvedev and Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.
The evening's entertainment will be shown on a giant screen outside the theatre and broadcast on Russian TV.
The opera company's season opens on 2 November, and their ballet counterparts take to the stage on 18 November. Tickets for the first three months are fully sold.