The Week in Review

Summing Up Broadway's Year: The Broadway League has released end-of-season statistics for the 2010 - 2011 season, which began May 24, 2010 and ended May 29, 2011. For the 2010 - 2011 season, which was a 53-week year, Broadway shows yielded $1,080,562,880 in grosses, and total attendances reached 12,534,595. To account for variances in the calendar year and in an effort to maintain an end-of-May end to the season, a 53rd week is added every seven years. (The last 53-week year was 2004; next one will be 2018). Grosses are up 5.9% from last season. Attendance is up 5.4% from the 2009- 2010 season. As a point of reference, attendance through week 52 was 12.26 million, which was up 3.1% over last year's 52-week season. Grosses as of last week totaled $1.057 billion and were still the highest grossing of any season on record (up 3.6% over last year).

Zambello and The Washington Opera: Glimmerglass Festival artistic and general director Francesca Zambello has been appointed artistic advisor to Washington National Opera (WNO). Zambello will hold this position concurrently with her position at The Glimmerglass Festival, where she was appointed artistic and general director last year. "I am pleased to accept the position of Artistic Advisor to the WNO at the Kennedy Center," Zambello said. "This relationship builds on my 10-year history with the company. In terms of Glimmerglass, this appointment allows for me to continue my work in larger companies with reciprocal benefits for the Festival, such as the sharing of principal artists and programming, and placing our Glimmerglass Young Artists in other opera houses."

Lyric Opera of Chicago Ends Season in Black: Lyric Opera of Chicago sold 91% of its seating capacity for the 2010/11 season and surpassed its $17.2 million fundraising goal. The opera company will report a breakeven operating performance for the year by using approximately $4.4 million in reserve funds from its Campaign for Excellence Fund, which was established in 2005. Lyric's operating expenses for 2010/11 were $53.7 million. Ticket revenue for the season (68 regular performances plus two student matinees and one subscriber-appreciation concert) was $23.8 million. The company raised more than $17.2 million in contributions. Fully audited financial statements will be issued in August. Lyric has operated in the black for 23 of the past 24 years-a record among the country's major not-for-profit music and performing-arts companies.