ANNUAL REPORTS 2009–10 and 2010–11 2 Introduction 5 Metropolitan Opera Board of Directors 7 2009–10 Season Repertory & Events 14 2009–10 Artist Roster 16 2010–11 Season Repertory & Events 22 2010–11 Artist Roster 23 The Financial Results 45 Patrons Introduction During the 2009–10 and 2010–11 seasons, the Metropolitan Opera once again enjoyed remarkable artistic successes while grappling with the prolonged financial crisis. The company maintained its commitment to presenting a wide-ranging lineup of new productions, offering eight new stagings in the 2009–10 season, followed by seven the next year. Eleven of these productions were seen in movie theaters around the world as part of the Met’s Live in HD series, which continued to expand and provide a bright spot to the company’s financial outlook. As the world’s leading producer of alternative cinema content, the Met’s Live in HD series pushed the company’s earned revenues to record levels. The Met’s worldwide HD earnings were $27 million and $31 million, respectively, in 2009–10 and 2010–11. Combined earned revenues for the Met (HD and Met box office) equaled $119 million in 2009–10 and grew to $126 million in 2010–11. A total of 21 HD programs and 205 audio transmissions were produced during these two fiscal years, adding significantly to the Met’s rich library of intellectual content. The 2009–10 Season The 2009–10 season proved to be an extraordinary showcase for the artistry of the world’s greatest singers, conductors, directors, and designers. Such acclaimed directors as Patrice Chéreau, Richard Eyre, Bartlett Sher, and Mary Zimmerman, among others, created new productions for the Met. The internationally renowned artist William Kentridge made his company debut with his highly imaginative Met premiere production of Shostakovich’s The Nose, timed to coincide with a retrospective of his work at the Museum of Modern Art. Even the architects Herzog & de Meuron and fashion designer Miuccia Prada saw their work at the Met, featured in Pierre Audi’s new production of Verdi’s Attila, conducted by the revered maestro Riccardo Muti. The season’s new productions starred such great singers as Renée Fleming, Elīna Garanča, Karita Mattila, Anna Netrebko, Roberto Alagna, and Simon Keenlyside. Met Music Director James Levine conducted performances of Tosca, Les Contes d’Hoffmann, and Simon Boccanegra, as well as two Met Orchestra concerts at Carnegie Hall. The resulting box office was 83.2%, down several points from the previous season but a solid number nonetheless in light of the economic climate. Five of the season’s new productions sold out: Armida, Carmen, Les Contes d’Hoffmann, The Nose, and Tosca. Six revivals could also claim sold-out runs: Aida, La Bohème, Der Rosenkavalier, Simon Boccanegra, La Traviata, and Turandot. Of the season’s 225 total performances, 103 sold out. The Met: Live in HD continued its expansion, with eight new countries added to the international network, bringing the total to 43. Total attendance for the HD season was 2.4 million compared with 1.8 million the 2 introduction season before. The Neubauer Family Foundation continued its support as the founding sponsor of the HD series. The company’s national HD education program reached public school students in 18 districts across the U.S. Metropolitan Opera Radio on Sirius XM continued to thrive, with 104 of the season’s performances broadcast live. The Met’s amounts available from fundraising to support operations including net assets released from restrictions grew from $127.3 million in FY09 to $133.6 million in FY10. The Agnes Varis and Karl Leichtman Rush Tickets program returned for its fourth season, thanks to the continued support of Dr. Varis, who also once again underwrote the company’s season-launching outdoor advertising campaign. The season-opening new production, of Tosca, was shared live with audiences in Times Square and on the Lincoln Center Plaza for the fourth consecutive year. Twenty live radio broadcasts were heard over the Toll Brothers-Metropolitan Opera International Radio Network; the series was funded once again by a leadership grant from Toll Brothers and major long-term support from the Annenberg Foundation and the Vincent A. Stabile Endowment for Broadcast Media. In 2009–10, the Met welcomed a number of new members to its Board. George A. Weiss was elected a Managing Director, with Edgar Foster Daniels rejoining the Board at that level. William A. Haseltine, Herbert G. Kloiber, Linda Mirels, and Daniel F. Terry, Jr. were named Advisory Directors. Daniel C. Cochran, Rolf Heitmeyer, and Stephanie Landess Suslak were named Members of the Association, with Charles Ryskamp re-joining the Board at that level, and Lawrence Chu, Pedro Magalhães, and Corinne Tatiana von Nordmann were appointed Young Associate Directors. Richard J. Miller, Jr., was elected an Advisory Director as President of the Metropolitan Opera Guild. The 2010–11 Season Three acclaimed directors made Met debuts during the 2010–11 season: Willy Decker, with his new production of La Traviata, Nicholas Hytner, with Don Carlo, and Peter Sellars, who brought a re-constructed version of his classic production of John Adams’s Nixon in China to the Met for the first time, with the composer on the podium. Robert Lepage’s monumental new production of Wagner’s four-part Ring cycle was introduced with the season-opening premiere of Das Rheingold, with Die Walküre following later in the season. Stephen Wadsworth’s new staging of Boris Godunov and Bartlett Sher’s Met premiere production of Le Comte Ory completed the lineup of new productions, one of the most diverse in recent memory. Maestro Levine was on the podium for the two Ring operas, as well as for Don Pasquale, Simon Boccanegra, Wozzeck, and two Met Orchestra concerts at Carnegie Hall. The difficult economy continued to be a challenge, with the season’s total box office coming in at 79.2%. introduction 3 Of the season’s 222 performances, 74 sold out, including the new productions of Le Comte Ory, Don Carlo, Das Rheingold, La Traviata, and Die Walküre. Revivals of Carmen and The Magic Flute also had sold-out runs. The Met was the first major performing arts organization to visit Japan after the devastating earthquake and tsunami; the tour was a tremendous success, bringing in revenue of more than $10 million and offering much- needed uplift to appreciative Japanese audiences. The Live in HD series, once again supported by the Neubauer Family Foundation, continued to be a juggernaut, expanding with additional countries and movie theaters and reaching total attendance of 2.6 million. The HD Live in Schools program also grew, with five additional school districts now participating, bringing the total to 23. Other media activities continuing in the 2010–11 season included the Met’s channel on Sirius XM, live performance streams on metopera.org, and Met Player, the online subscription streaming service. Fundraising for FY11 increased by more than $7 million over the previous season, with amounts available from fundraising to support operations including net assets released from restrictions totaling $140.8 million. Agnes Varis once again underwrote the Met’s popular Rush Tickets program, as well as the pre-season outdoor campaign. Toll Brothers renewed its leadership support of the Saturday matinee broadcasts. Six new members joined the Board during the 2010–11 season. Ambassador Nicholas F. Taubman was elected a Managing Director. Marcos Arbaitman, Perk Hixon, William E. Mitchell, and Arete S. Warren were named Advisory Directors, and Alexa Bator Chae came on as a Young Associate Director. Board Chairman Christine Hunter and I were both delighted to once again work closely alongside General Manager Peter Gelb and Music Director James Levine. Ann Ziff Chairman 4 introduction Metropolitan Opera Board of Directors 2009–10 Christine F. Hunter Ann Ziff William C. Morris Co-Chairman Co-Chairman President and Chief Executive Officer Mercedes T. Bass Kevin W. Kennedy Betsy Cohen Frayda B. Lindemann Vice Chairman Chairman of the Executive Secretary Vice President Committee and Treasurer James W. Kinnear Paul M. Montrone Mrs. Ezra K. Zilkha Honorary Chairman President Emeritus Vice Chairman Emerita Managing Directors Adrienne Arsht Edgar Foster Daniels Scott Kapnick Frayda B. Lindemann Hon. David A. Straz, Jr. Mercedes T. Bass Mrs. Paul Desmarais Sr. Kevin W. Kennedy William R. Miller Mrs. Wilmer J. Thomas, Jr. Frank A. Bennack, Jr. Marina Kellen French James W. Kinnear Vivian Milstein Robert I. Toll Susan S. Braddock Mark Getty Bruce Kovner William C. Morris Agnes Varis Jerome A. Chazen Beth W. Glynn Camille D. LaBarre Dr. M. Lee Pearce George A. Weiss Betsy Cohen Eugene P. Grisanti Mrs. Walter J. Laughery, Jr. Elena A. Prokupets Robert W. Wilson Leonard S. Coleman Christine F. Hunter Harry T. Lee Laura J. Sloate Ann Ziff Judith-Ann Corrente Frederick Iseman Jeanette Lerman-Neubauer Howard Solomon Honorary Directors Bruce Crawford Emily Fisher Landau James S. Marcus Miss Risë Stevens Mrs. Gilbert W. Humphrey Mrs. Alexander M. Laughlin John K. McKinley Mrs. Ezra K. Zilkha Laurence D. Lovett Paul M. Montrone Advisory Directors Josef Ackermann Nabil N. Chartouni William A. Haseltine Mitchell L. Lathrop Ellen F. Oelsner Maria Shustorovich Alan M. Ades Alberto Cribiore Marlene Hess Dr. Coco Lazaroff Kevin Parker Donald G. Sisler R. Joseph Barnett Rena DeSisto Thomas J. Hubbard Richard Massey Joseph R. Perella Daisy M. Soros M. Beverly Bartner Sanford H. Fisher Howard P. Kagan Anne Welsh McNulty Miss Leontyne Price Daniel Terry, Jr. Ellen S. Berelson Gordon P. Getty H. Alexandra Kauka Mrs. Corbin R. Miller Hartley R. Rogers Robert L. Turner Stanley M. Bergman F. Malcolm Graff, Jr. Klaus Kleinfeld Harvey R. Miller Winthrop Rutherfurd, Jr.