NEW YORK — The Metropolitan Opera began regular Sunday-afternoon staged performances for the first time in its 136-year history with Puccini’s “Turandot” in an effort to boost ticket sales and revenue.
Some in the audience wore tuxedos and evening gowns, others wore jeans and sneakers. There was even a man wearing a black sleeveless shirt and blue suede cowboy boots.
As part of new union contracts, the Met has the right to present up to 17 Sunday matinees this season and 27 in 2020-21.
The company believes Sunday afternoons will sell better than Monday nights.
The Met has long presented seven performances a week from fall through spring: evenings from Monday through Saturday, plus a Saturday matinee.
