The tent program led to a burst of positive press coverage, and strengthened the company’s relationship with its patrons. An in-house film studio, created to broadcast performances during the pandemic, has continued to operate. The “Ring,” an immense endeavor for an organization of Atlanta Opera’s size, suddenly seemed like an achievable goal for an emboldened organization.
“It’s the Mount Everest of productions,” Zvulun said, “and we have to climb that mountain together. When a company decides to do something like that, it builds competencies in finance, marketing, orchestra, production. There’s a change of metabolism.”
But the musicians who are negotiating a new contract say that, in terms of pay and job security, management’s proposals aren’t commensurate with a high-quality “Ring” or other artistic goals of a Top 10 company.
Zvulun insisted that, even if it was growing, Atlanta Opera needed to carefully husband its resources to avoid the spiraling costs that have sapped giants like the Met and Lyric Opera of Chicago. “We are very committed to compensating people generously,” he said. “We’re just averse to bankruptcy. We’re generous, not suicidal.”
The musicians, though, bristle at being warned about financial fragility when Zvulun’s compensation — more than $700,000 in the company’s most recent tax filing — far exceeds that of directors at even much larger American operas.
Wilson, the board chair, said that compensation figure misleadingly includes part of a bonus that Zvulun will receive if he stays to the end of his contract, and that the true number is closer to $550,000 a year — still high for the field. He added that Zvulun’s artistic and fund-raising results were worth rewarding.