The greatest tenor on earth failed to make much of a dent on Aussie apathy – though the prices may have been to blame.
So now they’re trying to flog Angela at the same sting rates. No seat less than A$125. Crazy.
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Fleming is Hamer Hall in Melbourne for two performances Sept 3 and 5 with the Melbourne Symphony and seems to be selling well, if slowly. Tickets at the more accessible and fair $45 to $149 for both nights. Capacity is nearly equal to the Opera House and quantity will likely make up for the lower prices (although $149 for the really good seats isn’t cheap).
$45 is quite a lot for the poorest seats.
Tickets for Ms. Georghiu’s recital in Shanghai last October were mostly in the US$140 – $200 range with a much smaller number priced at between $13 and $108.
I have no idea why Jonas Kaufmann did not sell in Australia. Many factors might have contributed including ticket prices and marketing. Yet appearances by top international artists are not exactly routine in Australia. The cost of bringing an artist and hangers on – on first and business class tickets – is far from cheap, income cannot be earned through the artist not being able to perform for some days before and after the longest international flights with 10 – 12 hour time changes, and taxes on fees in Australia are high. Add to that there are only 2 recitals over which to amortise all expenses. Then there is the fact that the A$ has depreciated significantly since the recital was probably first planned.
When you add all that to what will be an already high performance fee, a promoter has to charge very high prices to ensure at east some degree of profit. As for Ms. Fleming’s appearance with the Melbourne Symphony, I suspect her fee is considerably less for a longer Australian/New Zealand tour (the more so as she is a close friend of the Melbourne conductor and orchestra’s Music Director, Sir Andrew Davis). Then that orchestra is subsidised. Ms. Georghiu’s recitals almost certainly are not.