Construction of China Grand National Theatre officially started on December 12, 2001 after four years preparation and will be completed in 2005.  Some revisions have been made to the original plan to reduce costs and construction area. The current estimated cost of the project is 2,688 billion yuan (US $ 325 million), substantially less than the original 3 billion yuan (US $ 362 million). The reduction in cost comes mainly from the cancellation of the complex's theatre, which will leave it with a 2,500-seat opera house, mainly receiving world-renowned operas and ballet companies; a 2,000-seat concert hall, the site of concerts of symphony and traditional Chinese music; a 1,200-seat theatre for modern drama, Peking Opera and other local Chinese operas and art galleries.  Total construction area has been cut from the original 180,000 square metres to 149,500 square metres, because the 30,000 square metres parking lot, originally included in the plan, is going to be built separately. This new underground parking lot will provide the entire Tian'anmen Square area with its first major parking lot. When the parking lot is finished, it will be able to accommodate 1,000 vehicles and 1,400 bicycles.  Parking will no longer be a headache when there are major activities in the square.

Located on the west side of the Great Hall of the People in downtown Beijing, the theatre will be built to a modernistic design by French architect  Paul Andreu. Although the theatre will not be the world's most luxurious, will present "some pleasant surprises: "some of the world's best) performance facilities.
The entire design insisted on the creation theme of "a theatre within the city and a city within the theatre."                                                
The theatre will be China's largest, as well as its first comprehensive and multi-functional theatre.  The design should bring home at sight that it is a theatre, nothing else, with Chinese characteristics and in harmony with the other buildings in Tian'anmen Square. The building's height shall not exceed 45 metres, keeping it below the height of the Great Hall of the People.