


The Metropolitan Opera Guild was started during the Great Depression by philanthropist Eleanor Robson Belmont, who had a vision to create a guild that would support the world of opera, and donate its proceeds to the Metropolitan Opera.Unquestionably there are many marvelous opera houses in the world, but the Metropolitan Opera House remains the gold standard. The Met’s expansive repertoire numbers some 200 works and counting. Under Peter Gelb’s extraordinary leadership, the Met has blazed into the future, deftly embracing the latest broadcast technology and media outlets to capture the attention of the greater public and a mass audience heretofore unimagined. Indeed, some of today’s greatest voices, such as Renée Fleming, Thomas Hampson, Susan Graham, and Mariusz Kwiecien have emerged from the Metropolitan Opera Rising Stars program. And today, Placido Domingo, the irrepressible and unchallenged opera superstar of our time, carries forth this legacy. Luciano Pavarotti, Maria Callas and Leontyne Price all graced the stage on numerous occasions. The most stellar voices in the pantheon of opera have been, and continue to be, regulars at the Metropolitan Opera House. This signals that the performance is about to start. Cluster-shaped chandeliers, their crystals aglow, begin to ascend toward the high ceiling overhead. Each night, audience members are treated to an experience unmatched by other opera houses. After more than fifty seasons, it still retains the quintessential Manhattan glamour and mid-century modern elegance. While the original opera house opened in 1883 at 39th Street and Broadway, it has been at its current location since 1962.
#The metropolitan opera ny windows
Two Marc Chagall painted murals, framed in large windows of the grand tier lobby, give the opera house an especially distinct look. Koch Theater and New York Philharmonic’s David Geffen Hall, the Metropolitan Opera looks over a vast plaza and the wondrous, ever-spouting Revson Fountain. Situated between New York City Ballet’s David H. The majestic 3,800-seat opera house is located at the iconic Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, and is the only structure with a facade facing the major thoroughfare of Broadway on Manhattan’s Upper West Side. The Metropolitan Opera House is among the most powerful cultural institutions in the world of opera.
