NEW YORK, Feb. 28 (UPI) -- Gerard Mortier, known for his provocative, contemporary interpretations, will be the general manager and artistic director the New York City Opera in 2009.
Mortier, director of the Paris National Opera, succeeds Paul Kellogg, who leaves in May.
Mortier said he would stop the company's search for a new home, instead staying put in the New York State Theater, he told The New York Times in a telephone interview.
He added that he hopes to collaborate with the New York City Ballet, which also performs at the State Theater; reduce the number of productions and move toward presenting one opera at a time that is typically done in Europe.
Most of all, Mortier said he would bring his contemporary sensibility to New York.
"Even an old piece by Mozart has to tell us something about today," he said. "To be modern is to be sensitive to everything that happens around you."
For the two seasons before he officially begins at the City Opera, Mortier said he would spend at least one week a month in New York. Susan Baker, the opera's chairwoman, said she would assume a greater administrative role.
