The English National Opera has announce that it will offer under-18s free Saturday night tickets.

The new move is a “Seismic” initiative to attract a new generation and encourage younger audiences to attend the opera.

In a press statement Stuart Murphy, the former channel controller of the youth channel BBC Three who joined ENO as CEO in March, said the initiative was rooted in the company’s core values. “We were founded on the belief that opera is for everyone. Removing cost as a barrier to entry for under-18s is a seismic leap forward for ENO and for opera as a whole,” he added.

The free tickets will be for “cheap sets” in balcony and everyone under 16 will need to be accompanied by an adult. According to the ENO, an adult who purchases a ticket will be able to take up to four children for free. Young adults 16 to 17 will be able to book one ticket each.

This spring, the ENO is set to offer such works as “La Bohème, “Akhnaten,” “The Merry Widow,” “The Magic Flute,” and the new opera “Jack the Ripper: the Women of Whitechapel.”