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The Met and the Future of Opera
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How do you take opera and make it fresh and thrilling again for a 21st century-audience raised on hip hop, iPods, and the movies?
Well, if you're Peter Gelb, head of the Metropolitan Opera in New York, you start by blasting right out of the opera hall, bringing in a dozen swooping cameras, beaming live, high-definition broadcasts straight into movie theaters all over the world, and bringing out the high-drama actor in your singers.
No more "park and bark" Brunhildas. Roll over Pucini. Pick it up Madam Butterfly.
This hour On Point: Peter Gelb, and the remaking of the Met.Guests:
Peter Gelb, general manager of The Metropolitan Opera.
Justin Davidson, Pulitzer Prize-winning classical music critic for New York magazine.
Marlena Malas, a former opera singer with companies in New York City, Santa Fe, Boston, Miami, Washington, D.C., and Milwaukee, she teaches at The Curtis Institute, Juilliard, and Manhattan School of Music.
This program aired on January 4, 2008.