--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It was my contention that opera can not…" description: "\"It was my contention that opera can not only pay for itself if it is well given, but it can also command a much wider audience if given like a play wit..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/89f/gian-carlo-menotti-15915_also_it-was-my-contention-that-opera-can-not_486791.jpg" --- # It was my contention that opera can not only pay for… ![“It was my contention that opera can not only pay for itself if it is well given, but it can also command a much wider audience if given like a play with lots of rehearsals and wonderful singers that fit the role.” quote by Gian Carlo Menotti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/89f/gian-carlo-menotti-15915_also_it-was-my-contention-that-opera-can-not_486791.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/89f/gian-carlo-menotti-15915_also_it-was-my-contention-that-opera-can-not_486791.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/89f/gian-carlo-menotti-15915_also_it-was-my-contention-that-opera-can-not_486791.jpg) > “It was my contention that opera can not only pay for itself if it is well given, but it can also command a much wider audience if given like a play with lots of rehearsals and wonderful singers that fit the role.” [Gian Carlo Menotti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gian-carlo-menotti/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Opera can become financially self‑sufficient and attract broader audiences when staged with theatrical discipline and appropriate singers. **In simple terms:** Well‑run opera can pay for itself and draw more people. Key Takeaway Invest in rehearsals and casting. Themes opera finance audience development theatre production Mood optimistic pragmatic Type strategic inspirational When to use this quote - season planning - budget meetings - casting decisions - marketing campaigns Key Concepts Sustainability artistic integrity accessibility Questions to Reflect On - How can you balance artistic quality with commercial appeal? - What rehearsals are essential for success? A Different Perspective Audience may resist non‑traditional formats. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Also](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/also/) [Audience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/audience/) [Command](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/command/) [Contention](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/contention/) [Contention Opera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/contention-opera-4174564/) [Fit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fit/) [Given](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/given/) [Itself](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/itself/) [Like](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like/) [Lots](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lots/) [Lots Rehearsals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lots-rehearsals-4174566/) [Much](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/much/) [Only](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/only/) [Opera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opera/) [Opera Pay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opera-pay-4174565/) [Pay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pay/) [Play](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/play/) [Rehearsals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rehearsals/) [Rehearsals Wonderful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rehearsals-wonderful-4174567/) [Role](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/role/) [Singers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/singers/) [Well](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/well/) [Wider](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wider/) [Wider Audience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wider-audience-284561/) [Wonderful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wonderful/) ## Related quotes > [For those that don't know much about 'American Idiot' or Green Day, just know that it's my generation's The Who's 'Tommy' or Pink Floyd's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jake-epstein/for-those-that-don-t-know-much-about-american-idiot-or-green-day-just/) [Jake Epstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jake-epstein/) > [I wanted to make a film that was sophisticated and emotional, but for a wider audience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hopkins/i-wanted-to-make-a-film-that-was-sophisticated-and-emotional-but-for/) [Stephen Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hopkins/) > [Here's the rule that I set for myself, and I believe it - even on a show like 'Curb Your Enthusiasm': the more personal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-steinberg/here-s-the-rule-that-i-set-for-myself-and-i-believe-it-even-on-a-show/) [David Steinberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-steinberg/) > [I'm attracted to work that will reach a wider audience than just the Indian masses.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arjun-mathur/i-m-attracted-to-work-that-will-reach-a-wider-audience-than-just-the/) [Arjun Mathur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arjun-mathur/) > [T20 is fast-paced and a wonderful vehicle to attract wider audience. 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With 'Tiger Zinda Hai' I reached out to Salman Khan's market, through 'Soorma' I can reach…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angad-bedi/i-would-like-to-get-a-wider-audience-with-tiger-zinda-hai-i-reached/) [Angad Bedi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angad-bedi/) > [Perception towards Indian television has changed in past few years. It is no more such a small screen, in fact it has wider audience…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mukesh-tiwari/perception-towards-indian-television-has-changed-in-past-few-years-it/) [Mukesh Tiwari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mukesh-tiwari/) ## More by Gian Carlo Menotti > [It takes a Bobby White to make a tired 90-year-old composer write a song about love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gian-carlo-menotti/it-takes-a-bobby-white-to-make-a-tired-90-year-old-composer-write-a/) [Gian Carlo Menotti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gian-carlo-menotti/) > [It's always what you did before. The year before is always so much better. Even when the critics hated what you did then, it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gian-carlo-menotti/it-s-always-what-you-did-before-the-year-before-is-always-so-much/) [Gian Carlo Menotti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gian-carlo-menotti/) > [God gives you the gift of melody or He doesn't - it's as simple as that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gian-carlo-menotti/god-gives-you-the-gift-of-melody-or-he-doesn-t-it-s-as-simple-as-that/) [Gian Carlo Menotti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gian-carlo-menotti/) > [A man only becomes wise when he begins to calculate the approximate depth of his ignorance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gian-carlo-menotti/a-man-only-becomes-wise-when-he-begins-to-calculate-the-approximate/) [Gian Carlo Menotti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gian-carlo-menotti/) > [People ask me whether I'm religious. Well, in a certain way, I am.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gian-carlo-menotti/people-ask-me-whether-i-m-religious-well-in-a-certain-way-i-am/) [Gian Carlo Menotti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gian-carlo-menotti/) > [At the premieres, I always watch the audience. If a child asks to go to the bathroom, I know I've failed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gian-carlo-menotti/at-the-premieres-i-always-watch-the-audience-if-a-child-asks-to-go-to/) [Gian Carlo Menotti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gian-carlo-menotti/) > [I loathe my body. The liver spots, the sagging flesh.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gian-carlo-menotti/i-loathe-my-body-the-liver-spots-the-sagging-flesh/) [Gian Carlo Menotti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gian-carlo-menotti/) > [A Schubert song, the A-major chord at the opening of Wagner's 'Lohengrin' - such incredible beauty is a mystery, the divinity of music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gian-carlo-menotti/a-schubert-song-the-a-major-chord-at-the-opening-of-wagner-s/) [Gian Carlo Menotti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gian-carlo-menotti/) > [I have a heart problem, so I have to simplify my life and be content with memories and friends and music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gian-carlo-menotti/i-have-a-heart-problem-so-i-have-to-simplify-my-life-and-be-content/) [Gian Carlo Menotti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gian-carlo-menotti/) > [Love, which, in concert with Abstinence, established Faith, and which, along with Patience, builds up Chastity, is like the columns that sustain the four…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gian-carlo-menotti/love-which-in-concert-with-abstinence-established-faith-and-which/) [Gian Carlo Menotti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gian-carlo-menotti/) > [I know of no better definition of love than the one given by Proust - Love is space and time measured by the heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gian-carlo-menotti/i-know-of-no-better-definition-of-love-than-the-one-given-by-proust/) [Gian Carlo Menotti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gian-carlo-menotti/) > [The creation of Spoleto was a social experiment. Because I've always suffered guilt from being a Catholic, when I was in my fifties I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gian-carlo-menotti/the-creation-of-spoleto-was-a-social-experiment-because-i-ve-always/) [Gian Carlo Menotti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gian-carlo-menotti/) > [For better or for worse, in 'The Last Savage,' I have dared to do away completely with fashionable dissonance, and in a modest way,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gian-carlo-menotti/for-better-or-for-worse-in-the-last-savage-i-have-dared-to-do-away/) [Gian Carlo Menotti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gian-carlo-menotti/) > [Fate has blessed me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gian-carlo-menotti/fate-has-blessed-me/) [Gian Carlo Menotti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gian-carlo-menotti/) > [I guess I am running the risk of becoming the Hans Christian Andersen of opera.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gian-carlo-menotti/i-guess-i-am-running-the-risk-of-becoming-the-hans-christian-andersen/) [Gian Carlo Menotti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gian-carlo-menotti/) [Explore all 41 Gian Carlo Menotti quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gian-carlo-menotti/) ## More Also quotes > [I'm a workaholic, but I also like to vacation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karrueche-tran/i-m-a-workaholic-but-i-also-like-to-vacation/) [Karrueche Tran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karrueche-tran/) > [I've also directed, shot, and edited several music videos.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-king/i-ve-also-directed-shot-and-edited-several-music-videos/) [Richard King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-king/) > [Movies have power. 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