Free Tosca Open House Announced!

September 2, 2009

Don't miss the season-opening new production of Tosca--four days before Opening Night. On Thursday, September 17, the Met will launch its fourth season of free Open Houses, with the final dress rehearsal of Luc Bondy's new staging of Puccini's opera, starring Karita Mattila and conducted by Music Director James Levine.

Three thousand free tickets, limited to two per person, will be available beginning at noon on Sunday, September 13, at the Met box office only. The rehearsal starts at 11am on September 17, with doors opening at 10:30am.

Tosca is the first of three Open Houses planned for the 2009-10 season. The final dress rehearsals for Les Contes d'Hoffmann and Armida will be open later in the season.

The Open House for Tosca has been underwritten by a generous gift from Agnes Varis and Karl Leichtman.

Free Dress Rehearsal

Renée Fleming

Location: Avery Fisher Hall (Directions)

Wed, Sep 16, 2009, 9:45AM

The Philharmonic's "Opening Day" begins with a free-to-the-public Dress Rehearsal featuring soprano Renée Fleming, Music Director Alan Gilbert and the Philharmonic as they prepare the evening's program.

The free dress rehearsal is offered to the public, for the third consecutive year, by the New York Philharmonic and its Global Sponsor, Credit Suisse. General admission tickets will be handed out on a first-come, first-served basis, starting at 8:00AM that morning, on Lincoln Center's Josie Robertson Plaza. All attendees will receive discount coupons to a future Philharmonic concert and have the chance to win free concert tickets, autographed programs, and pre-loaded iPods.

This is all-around generosity: generosity from the sponsors, obviously, but also generosity from the artists and the organizations' staff members, who have extremely busy weeks and, in the case of the Philharmonic, a very long night ahead of them. I also like that the Philharmonic is dolling out the swag, maybe from the balcony Evita style. They will change your way of life for a concert or even two-ooo.

My intern Nate got to The Met at 11am on Sunday and snapped this photo. At that point, there were over 1,000 people in line.

Along similar lines, 19,000 people showed up at Nationals Park to see the Washington National Opera's free Il Barbiere di Siviglia simulcast. Meanwhile, back at the gala ranch, Simone Alberghini (Figaro) sat next to Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Eric and I sat with another appointed official: Miss D.C..