Met Opera Reverses Field

Metropolitan Opera Guild-published mag to resume reviewing the Met.

by ppelkonen@gmail.com

Sunshine, lollipops and rainbows: Opera News will write about the Met!
Image from The Sunday Morning Hangover.

In a move reminiscent of the gyrations of a certain mechanical stage set, the Metropolitan Opera has reversed its decision to crack down on Opera News, the publication put out monthly by the Metropolitan Opera Guild.

The reversal comes following a page one story by Daniel J. Wakin in the New York Times, in which Opera News editor in chief F. Paul Driscoll revealed that the magazine, which has been in business for 76 years, had decided to stop reviewing  performances at the opera house.

Mr. Driscoll's announcement followed complaints from Metropolitan Opera general manager Peter Gelb about a review of Götterdämmerung by Fred Cohn and an editorial by ON features editor Brian Kellow chronicling negative audience reactions to recent productions at the Met.