Met replaces costly ‘Ghosts’

The Metropolitan Opera is giving up “The Ghosts.”

Cutting costs in the wake of the economic downturn, the Met is dropping next season’s highly anticipated revival of John Corigliano’s “The Ghosts of Versailles.” Angela Gheorghiu and Thomas Hampson, who were to appear, instead will sing in a less-costly revival of Verdi’s “La Traviata,” Met general manager Peter Gelb said Thursday.

“In looking at ways to economize, that was an unfortunate sacrifice,” Gelb said in an interview. “It’s a much more expensive revival than most.”

Gelb said all eight new productions would proceed as planned, but that some revivals might be replaced with less expensive ones.