Financial Troubles Hit New York City Opera; Company Must Raise $7 Million by Month's End to Continue Current Season
By: Tyler Peterson Sep. 08, 2013
In the midst of budget troubles, the famed New York City Opera may cancel the remainder of its current season, as well as the its planned 2014-15 productions, if the company is unable to raise $20 million by the end of 2013, execs have confirmed to The New York Times.
"The company's been living on The Edge and hand-to-mouth for a number of years, and we've gotten through our own share of financial troubles," George Steel, the City Opera's general manager and artistic director, recently told The Times. "We've had balanced budgets for the last two years, and we've been doing, I think, incredible work onstage. But we can't forge ahead without a significant infusion of capital."
Next week's American premiere of ANNA NICOLE is set to go on - but Steel confirms to The Times that the upcoming productions of ENDIMIONE, BLUE BEARD'S CASTLE, and MARRIAGE OF FIGARO will be canceled if City Opera can't come up with $7 million by September 30.
"Without a significant investment of money, the Company cannot confidently move ahead into the future as it must: stable, growing, and producing the kind of opera for which NYC Opera has become revered around the world," Steel said today in a statement. "New York City Opera is a vital part of the City and the Nation's artistic life. We are hoping donors from all over will rally to carry this glorious cultural treasure forward."
Just a few hours ago, the company launched a Kickstarter campaign to tap into the generosity of its previous and potential future patrons. Since it went live, $7,226 of the $20 million goal has been pledged.
City Opera moved out of its previous home, Lincoln Center, in 2011 after financial troubles hit. Since its departure, the company, which last year managed to raise the $11.5 million it needed to keep the stage lights up, has performed at various theaters and venues throughout the city.
To read The New York Times' report in its entirety, click here.
For nearly seventy years, since Mayor Fiorello La Guardia established it as "The People's Opera," New York City Opera has introduced generation after generation of young singers who are stars in the making, brought the public exciting new works and compelling, fresh interpretations of classics, acted as a champion for American composers and performers, and ensured that every New Yorker can experience the live art of opera.
New York City Opera has been a pioneer in the field of arts education for more than 40 years. Drawing upon the company's adventurous and contemporary approach to opera, NYC Opera Education provides students with a three-dimensional introduction to the art form, from page, to stage, to backstage. Students meet with NYC Opera Teaching Artists and other theater professionals in their classrooms, go behind the scenes to see how productions come together, and watch world-class performances during the season.
Comments
Videos