Semiramide takes in $1.2 million in North America
The Met: Live in HD continued its twelfth season Saturday with its live transmission of Rossini’s rarely-performed masterpiece Semiramide, taking in an estimated attendance of 54,577 in North America and earning a gross of $1.2 million. It was seen live on more than 900 screens. An estimated additional 70,000 people saw it live on 800 screens in 37 countries in Europe, 11 countries in Latin America, Russia, Egypt, Israel, Jamaica, and Morocco.
Delayed showings throughout Asia, Australia, Madagascar, New Zealand and South Africa, and encore performances in North America and Europe, are expected to boost worldwide attendance of Semiramide to more than 160,000. The encore screenings in the U.S are on Wednesday, March 14; the encore screenings in Canada are on April 21, 23, and 25.
The all-star bel canto cast featured Angela Meade in the title role of the murderous Queen of Babylon, with Elizabeth DeShong as Arsace, Javier Camarena as Idreno, Ildar Abdrazakov as Assur, and Ryan Speedo Green as Oroe. The conductor was Maurizio Benini.
The live transmission, hosted by Christopher Maltman, was directed for cinema by Barbara Willis Sweete.
The Met: Live in HD, the Met’s award-winning series of live transmissions to movie theaters and performing arts centers around the world, has expanded its worldwide distribution to more than 2200 theaters in 73 countries this season and has sold more than 24 million tickets since its inception in 2006.
Semiramide was the seventh of ten live transmissions to be shown this season. The next transmission will be the Met’s new production of Così fan tutte, Mozart’s comedy of sex and manners, on Saturday, March 31 starring Tony Award–winner Kelli O’Hara as Despina and Christopher Maltman as Don Alfonso alongside Amanda Majeski, Serena Malfi, Ben Bliss, and Adam Plachetka as the pairs of young lovers who test each other’s faithfulness.
