5:22 p.m. | Updated The Philadelphia Orchestra’s program Saturday night was to include music from the Berg opera “Lulu,” and the ensemble hopes to avoid the protagonist’s tawdry end. The board of the Philadelphia Orchestra’s program voted Saturday to file for bankruptcy protection under Chapter 11. Unlike Lulu, who died at the hands of Jack the Ripper, the orchestra will live on, rehearsing and continuing to give concerts while a bankruptcy court judges considers the case.
The move was expected. The board said a bankruptcy filing was needed to save the institution in the long run. But the committee representing the musicians — who are negotiating for a new contract — strongly opposed the move, saying executives are inflating the financial burden and arguing that bankruptcy protection will only hurt donations and undermine the quality of the orchestra.
At a news conference after the vote, Richard Worley, the board chairman, said that it was “not quite unanimous.”
Allison Vulgamore, the orchestra’s president and chief executive officer, said: “It’s business as usual. Let’s get the word out. It’s Mahler tonight,” referring to Mahler’s Symphony No. 4, which was also on Saturday night’s program. “The bottom line is, people need to come.”
The filing is the only way to buy breathing room so it can build up the coffers, the officials said.
Ms. Vulgamore said lawyers would file the bankruptcy petition over the weekend. Salaries will still be paid, but the orchestra will review all contracts with its business partners – especially the Kimmel Center, where it pays rent. It will come up with a reorganization plan to be approved by a bankruptcy judge. It will also continue to negotiate with the musicians over a new contract.
“We hope to emerge from Chapter 11 by later this year,” Mr. Worley said. He said the atmosphere during the vote was emotional. “The room was filled with people who really love this orchestra, making
a difficult decision we think is in its long term interests,” Mr. Worley said. “Not every eye was dry throughout the morning.”
The orchestra members who sit on the board voted against the
filing, he said.
Ms. Vulgamore said the board felt heavily the weight of the Philadelphia Orchestra’s tradition. “But we also talked about wanting to see our future and taking the necessary steps to get there to it.”
In any case, no other orchestra of the caliber of the Fabulous Philadelphians — an internationally famous ensemble that was the first American orchestra to visit China and counts Leopold Stokowski and Eugene Ormandy as music directors — has crossed the threshold of bankruptcy court.
The orchestra said it has cash to pay the bills for only two more months, and that the gap between what it has to pay to operate this season and what it earns is $13 million. Emergency fund-raising will only bring that down to $5 million, management officials said.