Lyric & Musicians Reach Deal, Dodge Strike

By Marcus Gilmer in Arts & Entertainment on Dec 4, 2009 3:40PM

The show, as they say, will go on as the Lyric Opera and its musician negotiated a deal that will avoid a threatened strike and allow tomorrow night's opening of "The Merry Widow" to carry on as scheduled. The 76-member orchestra had been performing without a contract since the new season began in September. Per the Sun-Times:

Management and the players had reached an impasse over the length of a new contract and the combination of cuts, freezes and potential future raises that would satisfy both the company's demand to reduce spending in the present economy and the musicians' insistence that they share in an anticipated recovery.

The Chicago Federation of Musicians had set the strike for this weekend while William Mason, the Lyric's general director, called the demands "irresponsible" given the current economy. Details on the deal won't be released until it's ratified by the musicians later today.