In an unprecedented strategy, the Metropolitan Opera (New York) is committed to presenting long-running shows.
As New York’s cultural institutions came back to life last fall after their long pandemic shutdown, many tried to attract the public with shorter shows, often without interruptions. The Metropolitan Opera House took a different tack.
In a bold counterprogramming, the Met presented in November the longest opera in its repertoire, The Meistersinger of Nuremberg, by Wagneralmost six hours long. Even in pre-pandemic times, the job was a demanding task, requiring an army of more than 400 performers and stagehands, dizzying set changes, animated fight scenes and two 40-minute intermissions.
“There is always room for epics”, said Peter Gelb, general manager of the Met, in an interview. “There’s always an appeal to big events.” “We are bringing hope to opera lovers. Being able to put on an opera like Meistersinger is a symbol of the Met’s determination”.
However, the pandemic did add new levels of complexity, as singers, orchestral musicians, dancers and stagehands spend long hours preparing to bring the show back to the stage. (The final dress rehearsal clocked in at seven hours and 40 minutes.) Everyone must wear masks everywhere they go at the Met, except on stage. But once on stage, social distancing is forgotten: Meistersinger demands tender hugs, hand-to-hand fights and passionate singing, often within arm’s reach of dozens of people.
Wearing masks during early rehearsals was exhausting for some singers. “It’s really torture,” said baritone Michael Volle, who plays the central role of shoemaker and poet Hans Sachs. “You can’t breathe freely.”
discipline for art
The omicron variant canceled a host of Broadway shows, halted dance productions, postponed festivals, forced the cancellation of dozens of concerts and shut down the mighty Vienna State Opera for nearly a week. But the Metropolitan Opera, the largest performing arts organization in the United States, is still going strong and hasn’t missed a show this season.
Undeterred by the sharp rise in coronavirus cases, the Met has staged more than three dozen performances since late November, including productions of Tosca, The magic Flute, Cinderella Y Rigoletto. More than 3,000 people, wearing masks and showing vaccination certificates, filled the auditorium on New Year’s Eve.
“The largest performing arts institution in the United States not only does it remain open through omicron, but it does so with an exclamation point, glorying in a large repertoire executed thanks to its huge budget and behind-the-scenes forces., whereby it can, astonishingly, present four titles in a single weekend”, wrote the cultural critic Zachary Woolfe who signed up for several of those shows over a weekend, a marathon that he assured was not possible since 2019, pre-pandemic.
“Despite reminders to wear masks and discourage singers from holding hands at curtain calls, the performances felt largely normal. It wasn’t sold out, but it wasn’t surprisingly empty either.”.
By moving forward, representatives of the Met hope to show that opera can overcome the turmoil of the pandemic and beyond. “The fact that we are taking action provides a beacon of hope for our audience and our donors. We just have to make sure we survive the pandemic”.
Ómicron arrived just as the company was beginning to feel more secure, after losing more than $150 million in anticipated revenue due to the pandemic. When ómicron began to spread, the Met took steps to strengthen its control measures against the virus. Since the start of the 2021-22 season, it has required employees and audience members to be fully vaccinated and to wear masks inside the building.
As infections continue to rise, it’s unclear if the Met can keep up its streak and if audiences will continue to turn out in large numbers. But opera fans have celebrated the Met’s ability to remain a bastion of live music, even when other venues have paused.
Until May 27, the presentations of the bohemian by Puccini Directed by Carlo Rizzi and produced and set by Franco Zeffirelli.
JunHyeok Lee, 27, a student at Baruch College in South Korea who attended the opening of Rigoletto, said he felt privileged to be there at a time of uncertainty about the virus. “It’s a great blessing,” Lee said. “I’ll go every time, unless the Met stops.”
Paul is a talented author and journalist with a passion for entertainment and general news. He currently works as a writer at the 247 News Agency, where he has established herself as a respected voice in the industry.
