Greece's National Opera has gone from being a loss-making business to an income-generator with a... euronews, the most watched news channel in Europe Subscribe for your daily dose of international news, curated and explained:http://eurone.ws/10ZCK4a Euronews is available in 13 other languages: http://eurone.ws/17moBCU http://www.euronews.com/2013/11/04/high-notes-in-athens-as-greece-s-national-opera-defies-financial-crisis Greece's National Opera has gone from being a loss-making business to an income-generator with a brand new fan base. Three years ago, the Greek National Opera had an accumulated debt of 17 million euros. Today, that has been massively reduced by streamlining the organisation, reducing the operating cost and coming to settlements with creditors and suppliers. "It's quite funny but in very difficult times, a genre which is rather expensive finds itself flourishing. It's very, very important for the Greek culture in general and for this theatre in particular to open up to a larger audience and to educate the audience of tomorrow," says Rodula Gaitanou, the director of "Cinderella", currently being performed at the National Opera. Despite a reduction in state funds, the number of productions has increased. One of the solutions has been to take performances out of the walls of the opera's historic theatre and trying out unexpected venues. These include the central metro station at Syntagma Square and the bustling port of Piraeus. The aim is to attract a new fan base. "Such artistic actions represent the role of the National Opera in society in times of crisis. It breaks out of its walls and presents high-end productions in unexpected places trying to fill the lives of people with something beautiful and noble," says the opera's artistic director Myron Michailidis. A new opera house is also being built south of Athens. Designed by Renzo Piano, it will be part of a cultural centre funded by the Stavros Niarchos Foundation. The new opera building will double audience capacity and be big enough to house major international productions. Find us on: Youtube http://bit.ly/zr3upY Facebook http://www.facebook.com/euronews.fans Twitter http://twitter.com/euronews

• published: 04 Nov 2013
• views: 57