City Opera moves toward re-launch.
Having left Lincoln Center, stagehands prepare the New York City Opera's next venue: a Japanese volcano.
Image from the James Bond film You Only Live Twice © 1967 EON Productions/MGM-UA.
According to a report in Tuesday's New York Times, the New York City Opera has reached a deal with its orchestra, members of Musicians' Local 802.
According to a report on local news channel New York 1, the contract is for three years. Health care benefits will be included. Starting in 2013, orchestra members will make a contribution to their health care costs. The deal is subject to a vote by union members and approval by the New York City Opera board of directors.
Negotiations continue with the company's chorus, members of a seperate union, the American Guild of Musical Artists. The AGMA singers remain locked out.
In a statement, general manager and artistic director George Steel said that the deal will insure the opera's solvency.
In the last decade, City Opera has declined from a vibrant house that produced 13 operas in a two-part "split season" to a pale shadow of its former self. A myriad of problems (chronicled in past posts on this site under the tag "Opera Company Goes Dark") led to this appalling situation.
It started in 2007, with the company's decision to hire Belgian impresario Gerard Mortier to run the opera house. Mr. Mortier's tenure was largely an absentee one, and it ended in 2008. That was the year that the company went "dark" for an entire season. Since this happened when the chorus and orchestra were still under contract, City Opera was forced to raid its endowment to meet obligations.
In recent years, general manager George Steel reduced the number of operas produced to five, sold the fall season time-slot to the New York City Ballet, and removed music director George Manahan. He also cut back on important programs like VOX, the company's initiative to workshop experimental operas by young composers.
Things came to a head when Mr. Steel moved the opera company out of Lincoln Center, abandoning its home of 45 years. This move took place around the same time that the company's contracts with Musicians Local 802 and the American Guild of Musical Artists expired. Last summer, the City Opera unveiled its plan to make "all of New York" its stage, offering four operas in three different theaters.
But continued negotiations with both unions have proved contentious. With only 16 performances scheduled, orchestra musicians were offered $4,000, a mere tenth of their former salaries. Matters came to a head when talks broke down, resulting in a lockout that threatened the company's truncated season.
Rehearsals for season opener La Traviata (to be performed at the Brooklyn Academy of Music's Howard Gilman Opera House) were scheduled to start on January 9. Orchestra rehearsals for the February 12 premiere are scheduled to begin February 1.
