Mr. Wainwright, a singer-songwriter who also does things like re-enact iconic Judy Garland concerts, is a fervent opera fan.

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"It is important to give something back to help people's careers at a formative stage, " said Mr Hyman, an opera fan.

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The Met's simulcasts did not work in French cities without an opera house, so they do not increase opera's fan base.

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Bieito is the artistic director of the Teatro Romea in Barcelona where he has directed such productions as Carmen and Cosi Fan Tutte for the Welsh National Opera (WNO).

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Mr. Ives saw Mr. Glass's abstract opera "Einstein on the Beach" when it first came to the Metropolitan Opera House, and he's a long time fan of the composer's music.

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Madcap liasons and mischievous flirtations are based on opera scenes first created by Mozart and one of his librettists, Lorenzo Da Ponte, primarily from "Cosi Fan Tutte, " ''Le Nozze di Figaro" and "Don Giovanni.

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