September 3, 2024

Hope everyone had a great long weekend.

Michael Heaston has been promoted to Deputy General Manager at the Metropolitan Opera just a mere five years after stepping into Jonathan Friend’s shoes as artistic administrator. Now, he’s just one step away from the top job. Let's hope his new role comes with flame-resistant attire, because that hot seat is about to get even toastier!

+++

In this week’s email:

The big idea: Artistic Director exits Opera Australia amid boardroom tensions
Making news: Salzburg Festival sells out 98.2% of seats
Talking points: Opera Philadelphia launches $11 ticket campaign
Laugh of the week

CLASSICAL CHARTZ

Weekly selections are based on sales numbers and albums we simply love and think you NEED to hear!

For the complete top 20, tune into Classical Chartz with the New Classical FM’s Mark Wigmore every Saturday from 3-5 pm EST!

THE BIG IDEA

Artistic Director Exits Opera Australia Amid Boardroom Tensions

Opera Australia (OA) has seen a dramatic exit from its artistic director, Jo Davies, just nine months into the role. The departure, officially described as mutual, masks a behind-the-scenes conflict that highlights the ongoing struggle between artistic vision and financial survival within Australia’s leading cultural institutions.

A Storm Behind the Curtain

Jo Davies’ resignation marks the third recent high-profile exit of a female artistic director from a major Australian cultural organization, raising eyebrows across the arts sector. Disagreements over balancing artistic innovation with financial imperatives were at the heart of the split.

Internal Conflicts: Tensions between Davies and CEO Fiona Allan led to mediation earlier this year, but the board ultimately sided with Allan.
Financial Pressures: OA posted a $4.9 million operating loss in 2023, nearly double the previous year's deficit, and is bracing for another loss in 2024.
Artistic Vision: Critics claimed Davies struggled to adapt to the Australian cultural landscape, but she argued she needed time to find the right balance between innovation and commercial viability.

What’s Next for Opera Australia?

With Davies’ departure, OA faces the challenge of finding a new artistic leader who can navigate the company through its financial difficulties while maintaining its artistic standards.

The upcoming 2025 season announcement, set for September 17, will be a critical moment in determining the future direction of the company. OA’s chair, Rod Sims, emphasized the need for a leader who can align artistic goals with financial realities, while acknowledging Davies’ contributions during her brief tenure. — MV

TOUR DE HEADLINES

Manhattan School of Music (Courtesy photo)

Petition Launched for Pay Equity in Pre-College Training — Faculty at the Manhattan School of Music's pre-college program have launched a petition demanding pay increases to match industry standards, as they currently earn significantly less than their counterparts at similar institutions. | The Violin Channel

Jolie's Oscar-Tipped Opera Film Gets Mixed Reviews — Angelina Jolie's portrayal of opera singer Maria Callas in the biopic Maria received mixed reviews after its Venice Film Festival premiere, with some praising her performance as Oscar-worthy, while others criticized the film as emotionally flat and uninspired. | BBC

MSO Says Concert Pianist Who Dedicated Performance to Palestinian Journalists ‘Abused His Position’ — The Melbourne Symphony Orchestra (MSO) has intensified its legal dispute with concert pianist Jayson Gillham, whose performance was initially cancelled after he dedicated it to Palestinian journalists; the MSO argues that Gillham "abused his position" by making a political statement, while Gillham claims his rights to free speech and artistic expression were violated. | The Guardian

Sarah Gibson, Rising Pianist and Composer, Dies at 38 — Sarah Gibson, a highly regarded American pianist and composer known for her inventive and lyrical music, passed away at 38 from colon cancer, leaving behind a legacy of celebrated compositions and a promising career cut tragically short. | The Washington Post

MAKING NEWS

Salzburg FestivalDon Giovanni 2024: Kyle Ketelsen (Leporello)

(Photo: SF/Monika Rittershaus)

Salzburg Festival Sells Out 98.2% Of Seats

As the 104th Salzburg Festival drew to a close this past weekend, its administration reported that 98.2% of the season’s seats had sold out. This year’s festival featured 172 performances ranging from opera to concert.

What’s up: On August 31st, Austria’s famed Salzburg Festival wrapped its 104th season. Over the course of 44 days, the festival mounted 172 performances including 9 different operas, 5 of which were fully staged productions, as well as 85 concerts. The festival reported 250,000 visitors from 77 countries around the world and 6,000 tickets sold to people under the age of 27. Funds were also raised for humanitarian causes including Salzburg’s Children’s Cancer Society, Doctors Without Borders, and the Malteser Hospitaldienst Austria, which supports child refugees from Ukraine.

The deep cut: This year’s Salzburg Festival also celebrated two major Austrian birthdays. They commemorated the 150th birthday of Arnold Schönberg, dedicating a concert series to the Austrian-born Jewish composer who fled Europe in the 1930s. A new archive of works by Schönberg’s fellow 150-year-old Wiener, the Austrian writer and librettist Hugo von Hofmannsthal, also opened. Not a bad time for fin-de-siècle buffs to get their Austrian culture fix. — SS

PS: Schönberg’s official 150th is on September 13th, 2024. Cue up the Sprechstimme.

TALKING POINTS

La bohème. (Photo courtesy of Opera Philadelphia)

Opera Philadelphia Launches $11 Ticket Campaign

Last week, Opera Philadelphia announced its new Pick Your Price ticket program. The program aims to bring opera to a wider range of audience members.

Driving the news: On August 27th, Opera Philadelphia’s new general director and president Anthony Roth Costanzo announced the launch of the company’s Pick Your Price program. Ticketbuyers will now have the option of buying tickets for any opera for $11 or a higher price of their choosing. The program is the first of its kind in the US. Roth Costanzo aims to attract audience members for whom ticket prices are a barrier. He believes this program will impact the type of art the company can create.

Digging deeper: Many opera companies and orchestras program “cash cows” (think Carmen, Bohème, Butterfly, Beethoven symphonies) in order to raise money through ticket sales. Yet, Opera Philadelphia depends more on philanthropy and individual donations in its budget than ticket revenue.

Opera Philadelphia’s new price initiative has been described as a radical shift within the opera world. Soprano Renée Fleming called the initiative a landmark moment for opera. Since Anthony Roth Costanzo became GD in June, the opera company has reported an increase in $7 Million USD in donations, which will help to cover any shortfalls from its new Pick Your Price program.

The company has also considerably decreased its operations since the coronavirus pandemic. This season it will stage 9 performances, down from its previous standard of 30, perhaps meaning well-to-do audience members will be more inclined to pay higher prices. Fingers’ crossed Costanzo’s innovation pays off. — SS

GAMES

Nothing says Monday like a mini-crossword .

LAUGH OF THE WEEK

How did you like today's email?

Today's email was brought to you by Sara Schabas and Michael Vincent.

CONTACT US