Financial problems, stalled labor negotiations, and now even the live HD casts provide nothing but bad news just nine days before contracts expire and preparations for the fall season grind to a halt. Crain's Report says on Monday:
The Metropolitan Opera's introduction of live broadcasts beamed into movie theaters worldwide was an innovation that was supposed to not only generate much-needed revenue, but also introduce arias and librettos to viewers beyond the company's mature New York audience.That strategy, however, has hit a flat note. Last year, profits from the high-definition broadcasts fell 10.5%, and for the three seasons ended in May 2013, revenue and audience growth have remained stagnant. The number of Met moviegoers for the season ended in May was similarly sluggish. Meanwhile, attendance at the Lincoln Center opera house fell 17.5% in the five years ended in July 2013, while box-office receipts were down 4%, to $89.3 million, in the same period.
Those numbers, and the Met's deficit, are among some of the hard realities facing the company as it attempts to renegotiate contracts with its 15 unions. Many observers think a strike or lockout will occur, which could further damage the Met's shaky finances.
On the union side, the American Guild of Musical Artists, Musicians Local 802, and Theatrical and Stage Employees (IATSE) Local 794 are all on the warpath, resisting what some have called Met General Manager Peter Gelb's "demand for $180 million in pay cuts." The company's public relations department says:
The Met’s initial proposal calls for a 16 to 17 percent reduction in the company’s overall costs - a company-wide effort, in which any cost controls accepted by union employees will be equally matched on the administrative side. Further, the proposal suggests achieving these cuts through a combination of modified work rules and benefits, not salary cuts.The $180 million figure cited would be 55% of the Met’s budget in Fiscal Year 2013.
Also currently, AGMA - representing singers and dancers - has filed unfair labor practice charges with the National Labor Relations Board, days before the July 31 termination of the current collective bargaining agreements. With the Musicians Union far from an agreement as well, the labor situation potentially putting the company's fall season in jeopardy.