Metropolitan Opera

The Metropolitan Opera is a famous opera company in New York City. Known simply as "the Met," it is one of the largest classical music organizations in North America. Since 1966, the Met has called the Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center its home, located on the Upper West Side of Manhattan.

Founded in 1883, the Met began as a new place for opera performances, separate from another theater called the Academy of Music. Over the years, it has grown to become a center for beautiful singing and orchestral music.

Each year, the Met presents about 18 different operas. These shows run from late September to early June and include evening performances Monday through Saturday, with some Saturday and Sunday afternoon shows too. The operas performed range from older styles to modern ones, with creative staging that can be traditional or very new and different.

The Met’s performances feature a large orchestra, a chorus, a children’s choir, and many talented singers from around the world. Some singers start their careers with the Met’s special programs for young artists, while others become longtime favorites of the audience.

History

See also: List of premieres at the Metropolitan Opera and List of performers at the Metropolitan Opera

The Metropolitan Opera Company started in 1883. It was created as a new place for opera shows because an older theater in New York only let certain rich families attend. The new opera house opened on October 22, 1883, and quickly became very popular.

The first season had famous singers and played many different operas. The Met also traveled to other cities, sharing opera with people all around the United States. Over the years, the Met has continued to perform in many places, both in the United States and around the world.

Administrations

Abbey, Schoeffel, and Grau

Italian opera returned to the Met in 1891 with a season organized by Henry E. Abbey, John B. Schoeffel and Maurice Grau. After a fire destroyed most of the theater in 1892, they continued as co-managers, starting a period known as the “Golden Age of Opera.” Many famous singers performed at the Metropolitan Opera House during this time.

Heinrich Conried

Heinrich Conried managed the Met from 1903 to 1908. His time is especially remembered for bringing in the famous tenor Enrico Caruso.

Giulio Gatti-Casazza

Giulio Gatti-Casazza managed the Met for 27 years, from 1908 to 1935. He brought many famous singers to the Met and worked with conductor Arturo Toscanini. During his time, the Met grew in fame and quality.

Edward Johnson

After Gatti-Casazza left in 1935, Edward Johnson became the manager. He led the Met through tough economic times and World War II. Many new American singers began performing at the Met during his time.

Rudolf Bing

Rudolf Bing managed the Met from 1950 to 1972. He modernised the company and helped it move to a new home at Lincoln Center. He also welcomed many new singers, including some from different backgrounds.

Gentele to Southern

After Bing left in 1972, several leaders managed the Met. James Levine became a key leader, helping guide the Met’s music through much of the rest of the 20th century.

Joseph Volpe

Joseph Volpe managed the Met from 1990 to 2006. He expanded the Met’s tours and helped build a strong orchestra. Many new singers performed at the Met during his time.

Peter Gelb

Peter Gelb became manager in 2006. He focused on creating new productions, bringing in directors from other fields, and expanding the Met’s audience. He also started live video broadcasts of performances.

In 2018, Yannick Nézet-Séguin became the music director. He continues to lead the Met’s music today.

The Met Orchestra Musicians

In 2015, the musicians of the Metropolitan Opera created a special group to help each other. When the opera had to let the orchestra members go in April 2020, they used this group to raise money. They wanted to help members, helpers, and others who worked with the opera. By October 2020, about 30% of the orchestra members had left New York City because it was too expensive to live there.

Technological innovations

In 1995, the Metropolitan Opera created a special system called "Met Titles". This system shows opera texts in English on small screens in front of each seat. It was the first system like this in any opera house in the world. The screens have switches to turn them on and off, and they can show texts in different languages like German and Spanish.

In 1998, the Met began developing a software called Tessitura. This software helps manage contacts, tickets, and performances for the Met and other arts groups around the world. It is now used by over 200 different arts organizations in many countries.

Multimedia

Broadcast radio

The Metropolitan Opera has shared its performances with audiences far beyond New York through live radio broadcasts. These broadcasts began experimentally in January 1910 and have continued every year since. The annual broadcast season usually starts in December and includes twenty live Saturday performances through May.

The first network broadcast happened on December 25, 1931, featuring a performance of Hänsel und Gretel. As the Met faced financial challenges during the Great Depression, these broadcasts helped grow its audience and support. Regular full opera broadcasts began in 1933. Originally on NBC Radio's Blue Network, they later moved to ABC and then to the Met’s own radio network, now heard worldwide.

Satellite radio

The Metropolitan Opera offers a 24-hour opera channel on Sirius XM Radio called Metropolitan Opera Radio. This channel features live broadcasts during the Met’s performance season and replays past broadcasts at other times. It began in September 2006 and is hosted mainly by Margaret Juntwait.

Television

Main article: Live from the Metropolitan Opera

The Met started experimenting with television in 1948. Regular television broadcasts began in 1977 with a successful live performance of La bohème. This series, called Live from the Metropolitan Opera, continued until the early 2000s. In 2007, the Met launched another television series on PBS called Great Performances at the Met, featuring repeat showings of high-definition performances.

High-definition video

In December 2006, the Met began broadcasting live performances to movie theaters in high definition, known as “Metropolitan Opera: Live in HD.” The first was The Magic Flute. These broadcasts reached over 100 theaters in many countries. By the 2007–08 season, the number of theaters grew significantly, with over 700 locations worldwide watching these performances.

Internet

The Met provides many recordings of operas and excerpts through its online archive, Met Opera on Demand. This includes over 850 complete performances from the past 90 years. Operas can also be streamed on Apple Music and Spotify. The Met’s website offers detailed information about current and past broadcasts, performers, and performances.

COVID-19 pandemic

When restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic began in March 2020, the Met canceled the rest of its season but started daily free live streams of operas. The entire 2020–2021 season was canceled, but the Met reopened for the 2021–2022 season with a concert of Verdi's Requiem. In October 2022, the Met ended its last COVID-related restriction, masking requirements.

Opera houses

Metropolitan Opera House, Broadway

The first Metropolitan Opera House opened in 1883 with a performance of Faust. It was located on Broadway and designed by J. Cleaveland Cady. After a fire in 1892, it was rebuilt and reopened in 1893. The theater had a beautiful red and gold interior and could seat over 3,600 people. In 1966, the Met said goodbye to this old theater before moving to a new home.

Metropolitan Opera House, Lincoln Center

Today, the Metropolitan Opera is located in Lincoln Center on the Upper West Side of New York City. Designed by Wallace K. Harrison, this opera house can seat about 3,732 people. It opened in 1966 with a special performance. The opera house has great sound and modern stage equipment. When the opera is not performing, it sometimes hosts ballet shows.

Metropolitan Opera House, Philadelphia

The Met also had a theater in Philadelphia. They bought an opera house there in 1910 and performed there until 1920. The theater could hold around 4,000 people and was designed by William H. McElfatrick. Today, this building is still standing and used as a church and arts center.

Principal conductors

The Metropolitan Opera has had many talented conductors who helped shape its music and performances. In the Met's first season in 1883–1884, Auguste Vianesi was the musical director and conductor. Later, other conductors took on important roles, setting high standards for the orchestra. Some of these conductors had official titles, while others were famous guest conductors who made big impacts during their time at the Met.

Conductors in formal leadership positions

• Auguste Vianesi (musical director and conductor, 1883–1884)
• Kurt Adler (chorus master and conductor, 1943–1973)
• Rafael Kubelík (music director, 1973–1974)
• David Stivender (chorus master, 1973–1990)
• James Levine (music director, 1976–2016; artistic director, 1986–2004; music director emeritus, 2016–2017)
• Valery Gergiev (principal guest conductor, 1997–2008)
• Donald Palumbo (chorus master, 2007–2024)
• Fabio Luisi (principal guest conductor, 2010–2011; principal conductor, 2011–2017)
• Yannick Nézet-Séguin (music director, 2018–present)
• Tilman Michael (chorus master, 2024–present)

Other conductors of note in company history

• Anton Seidl (1885–1897)
• Walter Damrosch (1884–1902)
• Alfred Hertz (1902–1915, leading conductor of German repertory)
• Gustav Mahler (1908–1910)
• Arturo Toscanini (1908–1915, principal conductor)
• Artur Bodanzky (1915–1939, leading conductor of German repertory)
• Gennaro Papi (1916–1927, 1935–1941, leading conductor of Italian repertory)
• Tullio Serafin (1924–1934)
• Fausto Cleva (1931–1971)
• Bruno Walter (1941–1951, 1956, 1959)
• Ettore Panizza (1934–1942, leading conductor of Italian repertory)
• Erich Leinsdorf (1938–1942, leading conductor of German repertory)
• George Szell (1942–1946)
• Cesare Sodero (1942–1947)
• Fritz Busch (1945–1949)
• Max Rudolf (conducting staff 1946–1958, musical administrator 1950–1958)
• Fritz Reiner (1949–1953)
• Dimitri Mitropoulos (1954–1960)
• Erich Leinsdorf (1957–1962)

Deaths at the Met

Over the years, several people have passed away at the Metropolitan Opera House.

In 1897, a singer named Armand Castelmary had a health emergency during a show and could not continue. Another singer took his place, and the show went on.

In 1935, a manager named Herbert Witherspoon had a health emergency at his desk and passed away.

In 1960, a baritone named Leonard Warren completed his song and then had a health emergency right after, passing away onstage.

In 1977, a member of the chorus named Betty Stone was involved in an accident away from the stage during a tour and passed away.

In 1980, a violinist named Helen Hagnes Mintiks was harmed by someone during a break in a performance and passed away.

In 1996, a tenor named Richard Versalle was climbing a ladder during a show when he had a health emergency and passed away.

Additionally, some audience members have also passed away during performances at the Met.

Finances and marketing

The Metropolitan Opera had a big budget of $325 million for its 2011–2012 season. Much of this money, about $182 million, came from private donations. The opera house has 3,800 seats, and in 2011, about 79% of these seats were filled each performance.

The Met has found many ways to reach more people. Since 1931, it has been broadcast on radio, and since 1977, on television. In 2006, it started showing live performances in movie theaters around the world. By 2011, over 3 million people watched these shows in 1,600 theaters. However, in 2014, some people found tickets too expensive. By 2026, the Met had to make big changes because of money problems.

Lindemann Young Artist Development Program

The Lindemann Young Artist Development Program (LYADP) is a special program at the Metropolitan Opera that helps young singers, conductors, and vocal coaches improve their skills. It started in 1980 and works alongside the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, with many winners joining LYADP. Some famous singers who trained in this program include:

Norah Amsellem Paul Appleby Stephanie Blythe Vladyslav Buialskyi Alyson Cambridge Charles Castronovo Rihab Chaieb Layla Claire Sasha Cooke Ginger Costa-Jackson Dwayne Croft Eric Cutler Danielle de Niese Alexandra Deshorties Michelle DeYoung Gail Dubinbaum Joyce El-Khoury Ashley Emerson Ying Fang Wallis Giunta Christine Goerke Ryan Speedo Green Anthony Dean Griffey Paul Groves Andrea Gruber Nathan Gunn Cecelia Hall Wendy Bryn Harmer Evan Hughes Jennifer Johnson Cano Seo Jung-hack Dawn Kotoski Ian Koziara Mariusz Kwiecień Alexander Lewis Kate Lindsey Elliot Madore Marvis Martin Myra Merritt Brian Michael Moore Aprile Millo Erin Morley Heidi Grant Murphy Stanford Olsen Lisette Oropesa John Osborn Hera Hyesang Park Sondra Radvanovsky Kirk Redmann Morris Robinson Natalia Rom Samson Setu Shenyang Donovan Singletary Kenneth Tarver Russell Thomas Dawn Upshaw Tichina Vaughn Margaret Jane Wray