| A couple of thoughts and I think the answer to your question is no, although I am not sure that a second substantial one would necessarily need to be world class. I would think the inquiry is more about competition than stature. Regarding the old Met, aside from just getting used to traveling somewhere unfamiliar, the old Met LOOKED like an opera house (once again, from the Victorian vantage point) and I am confident some of the reluctant ones were into the old world grandeur. And regarding competition, it is well to remember that this has always been something on the minds of the Met's tenders. The Met did not pay Oscar Hammerstein over $25 million (in today's dollars) to not present opera on 34th Street as an act of charity. It wasn't so much that the two were necessarily of the same stature but that Hammerstein was offering opera lovers a cheaper alternative. Fascinating stuff. Beyond that, while I agree the space was defective when built, the truth is all of this happened at a time when tearing down beautiful old buildings (e.g., Penn Station and the many others that were threatened with demolition but thankfully saved) was the rage. To say the 60s were not a good period for preservationists is well beyond an understatement. |
