In Wednesday’s (2/15) Wall Street Journal, Jennifer Maloney writes, “As New York City Opera begins its first nomadic season this week after abandoning its longtime home at Lincoln Center, it might look to the Brooklyn Philharmonic for inspiration: The orchestra is in the midst of a similar experiment. Later this month, the philharmonic will begin its second of three residencies in neighborhoods across the borough this season. And officials say the new model is working. The orchestra has sold out every concert so far, is on track to balance its $2.5 million budget and plans to expand next year to as many as five residencies, CEO Richard Dare said. The 155-year-old orchestra’s current season is one of reinvention and collaboration, tapping the history, culture and talent of Brooklyn’s neighborhoods to create novel musical partnerships and, the philharmonic hopes, new audiences. … Like City Opera, the orchestra’s peripatetic season was born out of financial crisis. City Opera announced last year that because of recurring deficits and a decimated endowment, it could no longer afford to stay in its home at the David H. Koch Theater. The opera expects to save $5 million a year through the move, which it completed in December. On Sunday, the company launched a spring season that will take it to venues across the city, from the Brooklyn Academy of Music to El Museo del Barrio in East Harlem.”
Posted February 15, 2012
