Those audiences will be smaller 400 in a room built for 2,000. They ll be masked, distanced, staggered. But they ll be back. Even to have a small audience in the beginning, it s a big step for us, music director Osmo Vänskä said by phone.
The orchestra also announced another round of livestreamed concerts for at-home audiences watching on TPT, listening on Classical MPR and viewing on the orchestra s website. The orchestra will continue broadcasting Friday-night shows this summer, even after audiences are back.
The musicians picture audience members as they perform for microphones and cameras, said Vänskä, 68, who got his second dose of the vaccine this month. But of course it s going to be very emotional to see real people to play for.
Minnesota Orchestra to welcome back audiences in June
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Minnesota Orchestra to welcome back audiences in June
kstp.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from kstp.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
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For the second year in a row, the Minnesota Orchestra posted a record-breaking deficit. The operating loss of $11.7 million reported Thursday is the largest in its history, topping last year s $8.8 million.
COVID-19 is one obvious cause. Financial results for fiscal year 2020, which ended Aug. 31, capture the first months of the pandemic, which shuttered Orchestra Hall along with theaters and concert halls across the country.
The orchestra had to cancel 52 ticketed concerts and 19 rental events, leading to a $2.7 million drop in revenue from tickets, rentals and concessions compared with the year before. The pandemic also scotched the nonprofit s biggest fundraiser, one factor in a drop in contributed revenue.