“The Metropolitan Opera’s sold-out production of the Gershwins’ ‘Porgy and Bess’ has been so successful this season that the company is doing something without precedent in its modern history: It is adding several performances to the run,” writes Michael Cooper in Thursday’s (12/5) New York Times. “The show, which opened the season in September, was scheduled to return on Jan. 8 for seven performances, through Feb. 1. On Thursday, the Met announced it would add three more, on Feb. 4, 12 and 15. Big repertory companies … rarely have the flexibility to add performances … but the Met had an unexpected hole in its schedule [after] technical difficulties … with its plans to stage Robert Lepage’s complex production of Berlioz’s ‘La Damnation de Faust.’ … ‘Porgy’ … has become a runaway hit at a time when the Met has struggled with declining attendance. Starring Eric Owens and Angel Blue in the title roles, one performance this fall broke a Met record, officials said: Because the company increases prices as demand rises, the performance took in 113 percent of its anticipated box office revenue. The Met said that most of the original cast would be able to perform the extra dates.”
Posted December 9, 2019
