On Saturday the Met will present the first of its live simulcasts, transmitting The Magic Flute in high-definition images and surround sound to some sixty theaters around the country. I'm not sure how the locations were selected*, but it's a remarkably even cross-section of red- and blue-state America, including Warrington, PA, Fort Myers, FL, Olathe, KS, Chamblee, GA, Fresno, CA, and Phoenix, AZ. Singer-blogger Campbell Vertesi, on seeing this list, complained that the Met was throwing away its resources on "communities that could give a rat's ass about opera," but, as it happens, many shows have already sold out, including those in the places named above. For more on the Met's initiative, read David Patrick Stearns.
*The required technology is most often found in the newer suburban multiplexes, Pierre Ruhe tells me.
