Culture

Standing room at the Opera.

12 Sep, 2005

The director of the Paris Opera, Gerard Mortier has just proposed a novel approach to bringing high culture to a larger public. The Paris Opera is offering standing-room only tickets at the cost of 5 (top prices for the best seats are 300) but there are some simple restrictions. Only two tickets are available per person, the tickets have to be purchased 45 minutes before curtain-up and no booking is allowed.

There is a special ticket machine dispensing these tickets at the entrance of the new Opera house.

There are also reduced price tickets that go on sale 15 minutes before every show, which are available to those under the age of 28 or unemployed, but these tickets vary in number according to availability.

The idea is to break down the barriers created by prohibitively expensive Opera tickets and allow opera and ballet lovers access to the shows even if their financial means are not what they would wish them to be.