To the editor:
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Regarding Ted Shen’s Critic’s Choice (September 5), we would like to correct the reference to “last season’s alarming drop in attendance.” Lyric Opera of Chicago did not experience a drop in attendance in its 2002-2003 season; in fact, the company sold 294,533 tickets to 86 performances, a slight increase over the 293,140 tickets sold to the 2001-’02 season. In 2001-’02 ticket sales reached 100 percent of capacity for the 84-performance season; in 2002-’03 Lyric sold 97.4 percent of its tickets in the 86-performance season. The slight drop in percentage of tickets sold can be attributed to the increased number of performances, as well as to the continued sluggish economy. It should be noted that companies such as the Metropolitan Opera and San Francisco Opera would be thrilled to have attendance figures in the neighborhood of Lyric’s.
Lyric Opera of Chicago
