The Metropolitan Opera has set a record for its box office opening day. The company sold more than $2.6 million worth of single tickets for the new season.
The season starts Sept. 27 with a much anticipated new production of Wagner's "Das Rheingold'' directed by the Canadian Robert Lepage, starring Bryn Terfel and Stephanie Blythe.
It's part of the Met's first new version in more than two decades of the German composer's four-part epic, "Der Ring des Nibelungen.''
When the box office opened to the public Sunday, more than 24,000 tickets were sold for a total topping $2.6 million, compared to $2.5 million last year.
News of the recording-setting sales is especially welcome at the Met after years of financial struggles exacerbated by the recession.
