NEW YORK – The Metropolitan Opera season is getting shorter, along with some of its shows. The Met said Monday it is pushing back opening night by nearly 3 1/2 months to the latest start in the company’s 137-year history and calling off four of next season’s new productions in fallout from the coronavirus pandemic.
It also announced about $60 million in emergency gifts had balanced its 2019-20 budget. “Social distancing and grand opera do not mix,” Met general manager Peter Gelb said. “It is impossible to follow these social distancing guidelines that are in effect and presumably will be in effect certainly through the summer and into the early fall to have an orchestra situated in the pit, to have a chorus and dancers and singers in close