In Saturday’s (8/25) New York Times, Daniel J. Wakin reports, “When Agnes Varis, a Metropolitan Opera board member and benefactor, died a year ago, the company lost the person who paid for its heavily discounted rush ticket program. While callers to the Met were told the program would continue, no official announcement was made about its future. But this week, with the opening night of Sept. 24 looming, the Met said the rush tickets would be available for a seventh season. … The Met’s general manager, Peter Gelb, said the trust in Ms. Varis’s name declined to finance the entire program, so he approached the board. A group of trustees stepped forward and donated a ‘significant’ amount of money, he said. But it still was not enough to meet the program’s cost, at least $4 million. So the Met provided an undisclosed amount from its own coffers. … As in the past, 200 prime seats will be available for $20 each for performances on Mondays through Thursdays, with three-quarters on sale at the box office two hours before the curtain, and the rest available to those 65 and over by phone or through the Met’s Web site. The Met will offer $25 tickets through an online lottery for Friday and Saturday performances.”
Posted August 28, 2012
