New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1856-01-05

titr SIX 70 eight HUNDRED COMMAND nc oSsoie VIC" "a
single square foot OF the stage. or Performer oco'
pying sny position il. We mention these draw
back 10 success At the ACADEMY OF Music, which had
their origin with the prpuetors and in some degree
must ever exist. L. inquire What rs man
aeers have don, to render y popular 70 afford opers
At moderate rate., and 70 insure their success.
We believe there Il 10 fashionable class IN this city
possessing the ability, or If possessing il none with toe
cultivated taste ond the disposition to support the
Academy a. m exclusively Italian Opera House, at
prices of admission three to four times greater than
those Of our thcster. We not prepared to assert
the probability of it, being supported as an exclusively
Italian Opera House. giving performances only three
times week for portion Of the year, with any scale
Of prices high or low The exorb;tant rent Of that
house, and expenses Of performance given only three
times week, probably preclude the attempt TO oher
them at low prices, as We shall show when examining
them in detail But We are prepared TO assert that
trial Of the democratic low-priced plan has been
made in this city, and especially such has bcen
made at the Academy the lowestpriced admission for
good secured seats there having been 81 80 and even
q having been at one time charged. We are aware
Of the 80 cent performance at Midsummer in
swelterinr balrack called Castle Garden-a place
utterly unsuited in location, aud from the want of
ter We are aware also Of game OF cutthroat played
for short Winter season by two Italian Opera Com
panies in opposition at Nblos Garden and the Aston
place Opera House both charging fifty cents admis-
sion These are constantly referred TO by the uphold
ers Of the high priced plan as proof that the cheap
plan has been tried and found wanting. Butsthe
CaStleGarden affair proves nothing, and even London
could not support two rival Opera Compani,s when
fhc exD rincut MAS there tried.
In London, the plan Of giving Italian Opera for
Season of FIVE months tv ice thrice week, at very
HIGH rates Of admission was adopted because the
nobility ard gentry renting all the boxes for the sea-
son did not desire 10 attend oftencr and were willing
TO pay for their excusvcncs; and did not wish their
house when closed for their Opera performance to be
devoted to other purposes Consequently, each per
fornarce-as "A wear, rent of about $4,000 and five
months salaries had to be paid out of sixty nights.
recepts-cost about tvs ice or thrice as much as the
performers had been engaged like those OF other thea
tens bv the year. TO appear every night ana the rent
had been paid from the receipts OF 3l3 nights instead
of co. In every attempt to establish the opera III
New-York this London plan has been initiated But
on the contrary the Drama has been rendered popu-
lar. admission TO theatcrs, formerly sl Is now MY
cents. The Opera here thirty years ago was -, ana
AZ the commencement of the last season in the great
house built to cheaper and popuarize it, it was still
A.. What it may be next season, no one knows.
There are now here eight theaters, giving upward
of two thousand performances year. An almost
coma, number have been in existence, and hardly ever
less than half as many have been open, at any penod
during the past thirty years In that time there have
been given $4,000 performances In the same tllie
the number of Italian operate performances mas Deen,
n. nearly az We can calculate, less than I,JpV' In
these thirty years there have been 1850 acting nights
so there has BEEN average, one performance oil
Italian Opera every acting nights not"ihS'and'
ing that four operahous have been buit-the hrst
of them more than twenty years ago-especieiiy for
tbe performance Of Italian Opera. At this rate Of
propress the Italian Opera will never become an es-
tab.hed popular institution and the acceleraon has
been scarcely perceptible in the fifteen months the
Academy has been in existence. During these fifteen
months there have been 800 acting nights, or nights
exclusively of Sundays Some of our thcaters are
open every acting night in the year. Others are
closed for one or two months in the Summer
onlv. Taking them altogether-including those
denominated Museum Gardens and what not -
,he o;,e performances on ninc.tenhs Of the acting
upi,t9 ittne Academy nad Dceu managed IKE the
theateYs. the rent up to this time would have been
derived from the receipts Of $50 performances That
being nine-tcnhs of the acting nights from the date oil
It's opening. Within that period, however, AZ we nave
shown above there have been only about l@c perform
ances divided into three seasons, under hve acts o'
managers, with five changes in the scale OF prices OF
admissions all Of which proves that there has been no
fixed system Of management for establishing Italian
Operas at the Academy, but vacillating, expert
mental course to determine by sliding scale what
eventually the public could bear.
Having shown the value of the efforts OF the stock
holders of the Academy of Music in the cause OF art
as exhibited in the erection of that buldng let us IN
auire how they have fostered it SINCE and in what de-
gree they aid the manager An Academy OF Music, a
great national school of lyrical ant such as that pur
ports TO be- should BE- furnished on equipped with
stock Of scenery, a wardrobe aud musical library
sufficient for the performance of all standard works,
without taxing the manager pocket tor their procure
ment. From $50 900 to 100000 ought properly TO
have been invested in this manner, and The manager
only required to pay interest aud wear ana tear' but
the Academy opened with stock oil twelve scenes,
sufficient only for the performance OF TWO OF three
operas this we believe has been the sum total OF the
contributions of the prOpretors toward supplying tS
scenic and academic needs. rent OF per an
mum il the modest asked from a manager VINO IL
expected to give performances on about one nght LII
three or four taking the year through ana oesue the
stockholders claim admission free to 200 oil ihe oest
seats AZ every performance. Last year the perform
auces amounted to about 100 at an average OF Of ."
admission making the additional rent $4,000 or the
total at least 900 year, for building "hich COST
s335 900. We should imagine that getting 10 to IL
per cent for their money If not supporting the Operaat
apv great damage TO the stockholders pockets
Al the commencement of the last season thert ep-
- :; ;ou,nal which devotes much attention to