Metropolitan Opera Finances Hit a High Note

In a sign that the Metropolitan Opera may be easing itself out of several years of recession-battered books, company officials said Wednesday that the opera expects to achieve a balanced budget this year for the first time since 2004.

While specific financial figures for the current fiscal year, which ends July 31, will not be released until next spring, a spokesman for the company, Peter Clark, said the balanced budget can be attributed to increased revenues.