Quietly rolled out late last year in 28 locations across Canada, Met at the Movies is a program that beams live performances from New York’s Metropolitan Opera to Cineplex Entertainment theatres across Canada. Last Friday – thanks to ticket demand so enthusiastic that originally unplanned encore presentations are being added – the number of markets was expanded to 34, including Ottawa, Laval and Nanaimo.

‘And beginning this fall, we will be looking to add corporate sponsors and advertisers for the 2007/08 season,’ says Cineplex Entertainment spokesperson Pat Marshall. She declined to cite audience numbers to date, but stated that ‘these presentations have far exceeded our expectations.’

This story first appeared in Playback Daily.