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By Vivien Schweitzer
22 Feb 2007

The Opera Orchestra of New York, which specializes in rarely-performed works, may be forced to cut back next season's schedule because of budget woes, according to The New York Times.

Eve Queler, music director of Opera Orchestra of New York.
photo by Steve J. Sherman

Eve Queler, who founded the company nearly 40 years ago and remains its music director, told the paper that the only performance OONY can confirm next season is Bellini's Sonnambula on Februrary 27, 2008, with Eglise Gutiérrez, Dmitri Korchak and Ferruccio Furlanetto.

The company usually presents three performances a season of operas in concert at Carnegie Hall; its final production this season was Francesco Ciléa's L'Arlesiana on yesterday. Two other dates are reportedly reserved on Carnegie's calendar, in case OONY is able to muster the resources to use them.

Queler also told the Times that the company had rejected other options, such as moving to a smaller venue or merging with the Collegiate Chorale. OONY had asked Carnegie Hall to sponsor the performances (which it did briefly several decades ago) but was turned down.

The board is trying to cover a deficit of about $250,000 on a budget of $1.4 million.

Queler told the paper that her audience was aging, perhaps because younger devotees enjoy the visual and dramatic elements that are largely missing from concert performances.

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