The Bayerische Staatsoper in Germany has announced the cancelation of the remainder of the 2019-20 season and the Munich Opera Festival.

In a press release General Manager Nikolaus Bachler stated, “The cancelation of the remaining season and of the Munich Opera Festival is naturally very painful for the entire house and for me personally. A theater without an audience, without artists to enliven the stage and orchestra pit is nothing more than a dead shell. In recent weeks, we have gone through several scenarios for the realization of the festival, which were primarily intended to ensure the safety and health of staff, artists and audiences. However, none of the options proved to be practicable and satisfactory.

“Therefore, we are now examining under high pressure which premieres can take place at a later date and which activities can be possible online and through streams”.

The Staatsoper also announced that it is planning to gradually resume preparatory operations in the areas of stage in time for the autumn season.

The Bayerische Staatsoper is the latest in a line of canceled seasons due to the coronavirus outbreak. The Metropolitan Opera, Opera de Paris, and San Francisco Opera have already canceled the remainder of their seasons.

Germany currently has 138,273 confirmed cases of the coronavirus with 4,105 deaths.